Outward Bound

All aboard! Step into the Finborough and prepare for a voyage of discovery and a bumpy ride! Outward Bound is set in the 1920s saloon bar of a ship embarking from an unspecified English port to... well, umm... nobody knows for certain. 

Once the shore shrinks away into the horizon, we realise this is no ordinary vessel; a ‘jolly queer’ passage is about to unfold in this awfully British tale of seven incredibly different characters brought together by a physical and emotional journey, in an endless sea of questions. Slowly but surely, they all come to realise they have more in common than they dare suspect. 

Despite the evident class divide, they are all in the same boat... (excuse the pun!) Manners and morals become as turbulent as the tide and gentlemanly insults ricochet off deck. Louise Hill directs with a strong sense of the play’s combined humour and horror. The interchange between calm and chaos upholds the production’s healthy pace and the talented cast deliver engaging performances. The intimate, thrust stage allows no margin for design complacency and the detail is perfect. Everything from the labels on the beer bottles to the sweet scent of tobacco. This is the first time the play has been produced in over fifty years – and what a welcome return.

Jo Sutherland