Friendly Fire

Introduction

There are no adults in Peter Gill's play. There are no children either. Rather, all of the characters seem to be in a sort of limbo in which they feel no certainty about who they are or where they are going. They hang around together because that's what they've always done, but their lives are changing. Old allegiances are strained by new feelings; old assumptions are questioned by new insights.

Like Edward Bond's 'Saved' and the work of Sarah Kane, 'Friendly Fire' is a challenging play but one which is ultimately rewarding to study and produce precisely because it is so robust in what it says and the way it says it. At first glance teachers and students may be shocked by its use of strong language, nonplussed by the apparently inconsequential dialogue, or confused by the terrifyingly surreal ending. But while the characters may initially seem shallow, bleak and gratuitous, behind their 'front' lies a depth of compassion and morality. The drama of 'Friendly Fire' is in the young people's struggle to come to terms with their feelings of loss, love and alienation as they depart from childhood and await entry into an adult world that makes public displays of caring (represented by the war memorial) but doesn't actually care enough to change anything.

'Friendly Fire' is not an easy play to work on. The different themes it explores and the different techniques employed by Peter Gill work so closely together they are like a theatrical mobius strip. Just as you can't say where the beginning of a mobius strip is or even determine which is inside and which is outside, with 'Friendly Fire' the form and content are so intertwined that the only really effective way of understanding the play is to experience it in practice. Sixth-form or senior youth groups will doubtless emerge wiser should they do so.

Activities devised by Andy Kempe.