Dear England by James Graham.

James Graham’s play Dear England directed by Ruoert Goold transfers from the National Theatre to a fourteen-week run at the Prince Edward Theatre. in Old Compton Street. Joseph Fiennes leads the helm in the role of Gareth Southgate. Where we watch the manager flourish in his role and take on new training methods to build a team that has the potential to win.

Gareth Southgate became England’s manager in November 2016 after a brief spell as caretaker manager. His approach to leadership came from a humanitarian viewpoint. Everyone who was part of the team from the players, training staff and those who looked after the kit etc… were all to eat together now and become one unit. From a Managerial perspective becoming all-inclusive breaks down the “them and us” mentality and in my experience gets better results.

Along with this he also sources and employs Dr Pippa Grange (Dervla Kirwan). The highly acclaimed British applied psychologist, author and the Head of People and Team Development at The Football Association until the end of 2019. Her methods are to create open communication between the players, express emotions and overcome “fear” by breaking it down and understanding where these emotions come from and how to articulate them.

Throughout the play, the missed penalty by Southgate in the 1996 Euro’s game, which saw England knocked out haunts the manager deeply and you watch him relive and go through the pain on a couple of occasions. At times you want him to open up about the experience and put it behind him but he doesn’t.

Once again Es Devlin delivers an incredible staging design. The stage is set under a giant halo-like ring of light. The stage revolves underneath which allows for fast scene changes as the football world evolves at quite a pace. Information is beamed through the halo with match scores, player information and footage of past games which includes England’s 1966 win. The adrenaline-fuelled arena is set at times as the stage changes into various world stadiums where the players step into play their matches.

Harry Kane (Will Close) is an unlikely team captain from the outside, as the team flourish Southgate explains it is what Kane carries inside that makes him a good choice. The encouragement of social media influences watches the campaign for children’s school dinners by Marcus Rashford (Darragh Hand) gather momentum and help thousands of children. The “lads drinking culture” finally seems to be a thing of the past.

The Lioness England team will win the Euro’s Cup in 2022. Was met by a huge cheer from the audience as the captain Alex Scott (Crystal Condie) bought the cup on stage to speak to Southgate. Such a proud moment for the ladies’ team that deserves centre stage.

You do not have to follow football or be a fan to enjoy this powerful fast-paced play. Based on real events and experiences it can give Theatre audiences an insight rarely spoken about in the world of Football, a match begins long before the team steps onto the pitch.