A post Christmas family treat is our annual trip to the always excellent National Theatre. This year we saw David Hare’s new play based on Katherine Boo’s book “Behind the Beautiful Forevers.” Set in Annawadi, a squatter settlement on the outskirts of Mumbai airport, the play is a tour de force communicating a world in which life is cheap and the ever optimistic plans of the population are often thwarted by the sad realities of what it is really like to be powerless and poor.
The staging and cast are outstanding, and it’s the first time I’ve ducked in my seat at a theatre in reaction to a jumbo jet flying over my head. I cannot recommend it too highly: it puts life into perspective.