Hope Has a Happy Meal (NHB Modern Plays)

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In this world, the old alternative communes have vanished, forests have been poisoned into sick wilderness, and Ronald McDonald bestrides the globe. I also like the psychological insights, expressed perhaps most directly in the clown game show sequence, and the drunken episode when Hope and Lor get plastered.

In the end I found it playful but not an effective critique of capitalism, nor a particularly hopeful piece about redemption, nor a strong rejection or message about police brutality or domestic abuse. While the narrative is strong and as an audience member I found Hope has a Happy Meal engaging and fun, I did struggle with identifying its key messages.But in the People's Republic of Koka Kola – a world of dwindling resources, corruption and corporate giants – what happens to Hope? I really like the way that Fowler parodies the banal pronouncements of those in power, and his evident sympathy for the marginalized and the needy.

Felix Scott gives a panoply of excellent performances, from a brutal cop to a hopeless ex-husband, and there is enough vim and vigour to the production that when Isla announces that “this is, like, the best adventure ever! More surprising moments could have been created had there been more time, space and dramaturgy for Fowler to utilise his clearly vivid imagination. There is also something very allusive in his writing: the mention of Strawberry Fields commune brings to mind the Beatles song “Eleanor Rigby” when, some time later, it becomes evident that we are dealing with a situation that could be described as “all the lonely people, where do they all come from? They have everything from basic sourdoughs and baguettes to ciabatta, mini savoury filled focaccias and even Breton Kouign Amann.There are some fantastical moments, including a bizarre gameshow hosted by a makeshift Ronald McDonald which doesn’t add anything, and some soap opera drama cliches are thrown into the plot (think Chekhov’s gun) which don’t feel fully earned. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a show at The Royal Court with a weak cast, and Hope has a Happy Meal is no different. That’s absolutely fine, by the way, but I can’t help feeling that with characters this strong and a story this interesting, it might be a small, missed opportunity. That’s because there are so many ideas and commentary woven into each scene and character, some of which contradict each other, that none shines stronger than any other.

Ali and Isla fall for each other and along the way the threesome find themselves unwittingly kidnapping Wayne – it turns out none have the stomach for cold blooded murder. If the show wasn’t such fun you could dismiss this as naive wishful thinking, but that would be to underrate the power of being kind in everyday life. Although the quest narrative plotting slackens a bit too much towards the end of this 100 minute show, there are plenty of good passages of dialogue, with some lovely humour.

Laura Checkley’s Hope and Mary Malone’s Isla are nicely contrasting characters, and the early comic scenes are the strongest in the play.

Follow Hope on a surreal and frenetic quest through a hyper-capitalist country in this new play by Tom Fowler , directed by Royal Court Associate Director, Lucy Morrison. Lor is angry with Hope because she feels betrayed and abandoned when Hope left — and 24 years is a long time to wait for reconciliation. The reveal to Hope’s backstory isn’t as interesting as the shenanigans that preceded it, and we never discover what has motivated her to come back at this particular moment. You will be pleased to know that McDonald’s is referenced about a hundred times, though the Happy Meal toy is never realised.When protagonist Hope lands at Nike International Airport after 24 years abroad, she knows everything has changed.