The first of Dominic J Taylor’s plays to be produced, Stop Search addresses the use and abuse of stop and search powers executed by the police against predominantly young black males. Drawing on Taylor’s own experience in the justice system as well as contributions from parents and young people affected by this practice, the play examines the strain put on the police and communities when targets and racial profiling are made a higher priority than positive relations.
The piece centres on two families whose lives are intertwined when thirteen year old Callie Adeyemi goes missing after going out to buy sweets. In trying to find their missing son, Ivan (Valentine Hanson) and Dianne (Renee Castle) make a number of shocking discoveries about his life, partly from his fifteen year old sister Allana (Jelissa Campbell) but also from the discovery of no fewer than thirty-six stop and search forms that Callie has amassed in a shoebox. Fearing their son must be involved in criminal behaviour, the parents reach out to the local police including Mick (Ray Macallan), a senior officer they coincidentally met on the very night of Callie’s disappearance.
There are some fantastic moments in Stop Search, with the pressures felt by young officers (including Mick’s son, Greg) and the socially damaging effects of young black boys being criminalised deftly highlighted. Initially there is a little too much exposition and some overlong scenes, but the intensity and drama builds and the scene where the stop search forms were discovered was one of the play’s best. Unfortunately in the latter part it felt as if the writer lost confidence that the issues were clear enough and began explaining events rather than trusting the drama to unfold which was a pity as much of the tension was then lost. This was not helped by some questionable staging and unfocussed direction.
The majority of the cast gave strong, nuanced performances throughout; with Hanson, Castle and Macallan impressing at every turn. Jerome Holder was particularly noteworthy as Callie, effortlessly capturing the mischievous youngster worn down by repeated persecution and humiliation at the hands of over-zealous officers. Jack Shalloo’s Greg is likeable and sympathetic as an inexperienced officer struggling in his father’s shadow, and Campbell’s Allana is both amusing and moving in equal measure.
On the whole this play informed and intrigued, but would definitely benefit from further development and stronger direction so that it can realise it’s potential and become the really important piece that it deserves to be.
