- “Dear England” Play Celebrates Gareth Southgate’s Impact as England’s Manager
- Joseph Fiennes Mesmerizes as Gareth Southgate in Critically Acclaimed Drama
- Balancing Football and Politics: “Dear England” Explores National Identity and Cultural Shifts
According to theatre critics, Dear England, a new play about England men’s football manager Gareth Southgate, has scored a goal.
The drama, starring Joseph Fiennes as England’s manager, premiered Tuesday evening at the National Theatre in London.
Southgate’s journey since his Euro 96 penalty miss and how he changed the team’s masculine perceptions inspired it.
According to The Telegraph, the Shakespeare in Love actor “mesmerizes” as Southgate.
It received five stars from critic Dominic Cavendish, who added that playwright James Graham, whose screenwriting credits also include Quiz, Sherwood, and the Crown, “brilliantly captures the blokey awkwardness within our larger national story.”
He wrote, “What begins as a useful recap of how Southgate has reengineered the England squad’s sense of itself (as well as its personnel) develops not only into a gripping drama but also provides a valuable glimpse at the confusions of our larger national story.”
Fiennes played the Bard in Shakespeare in Love, and he achieves a mesmerizing intellectual intensity, hands deep in pockets or delicately gesticulating, that makes Southgate appear almost like Shakespeare’s heir, weaving dreams for us all,” he added.
Clive Davis of the Times concurred in a four-star review that the “pitch-perfect” portrayal of Southgate “brings the game home.”
“He fires, and he scores. “James Graham’s portrait of Gareth Southgate’s tenure as England football manager is a delightful example of populist theatre,” he wrote. There is anguish, happiness, and a remarkable amount of humor.
Dear England, whose title is derived from Southgate’s open letter to fans, centers not only on penalties. But also on racism directed at black players for missing them, the Covid-19 pandemic, and Brexit.
Davis remarked, “There is a touch too much politically correct preaching in the final quarter.” “I could have done without the political caricatures of Theresa May, Boris Johnson, and Liz Truss. Graham makes his arguments about the strength of solidarity and compassion eloquently enough by showing us, Southgate.”
Sarah Crompton, who wrote the review for What’s on Stage, referred to it as “the beautiful game in a beautiful play” She stated that the dread of punishment is “the thread that holds the play together.”
She wrote, “It’s an exciting piece that you hope might convince theatre fans of the significance of football, and football fans will see how exciting theatre can be.” The production has an abundance of both vigor and sensitivity.
She added, “Graham is clear-eyed about the brutality of the decisions and responsibilities of professional sport, and he does not exempt Southgate from criticism. Occasionally, the writing becomes bogged down in incident – the woman next to me was confused by the details of the OneLove armband prohibition in Qatar – and in its metaphors.
“As a drama, however, it is utterly captivating, full of plot twists, vivid characters, appropriate conflicts, and great lines.”
The Guardian’s Arifa Akbar praised Graham’s “touching” and “funny” drama, praising its “tension and movement”.
She only offered three ratings and stated she had one or two reservations. “As endearing as the production is, directed by Rupert Goold, it takes a while to get off the ground, focusing on story rather than drama in the first half,” she added.
“There is strength in seeing the tale of football told on the largest stage of the National Theatre, with stirring moments in the second half, and it is visually stunning from beginning to end. So it scores in the end, even though it does not bend the ball like Beckham.”
Dear England includes depictions of Southgate’s top players and sports psychologist Pippa Grange.
Nick Curtis of The Evening Standard gave Graham and Goold’s take on England’s recent highs and lows four stars, praising their “brilliant fusion of sport and art”
Will Close and Josh Barrow are very funny as [Harry] Kane and [Jordan] Pickford, while Darragh Hand and Kel Matsena are discreetly moving as [Marcus] Rashford and [Raheem] Sterling,” he added.
“There is a goalmouth fracas at the end to accommodate the Lionesses’ 2022 Euros victory and Qatar-related controversies. It doesn’t matter. This is an exhilarating piece of work, as popular and political as Graham always intends his plays to be, and a team effort par excellence.”
Graham promised the play would examine “the identity of a football team and the country” and emphasize the “gentle revolution” in the team’s culture under Southgate.
The award-winning author told, “I think what has happened to the men’s England football team over the past six years has been quietly extraordinary.”
Gareth’s quiet revolution has been percolating in the background for a while, but we’re just beginning to grasp its significance.
Later, the actor Fiennes added that Southgate possessed “a sort of moral integrity and compass.”
“As a young player, he was raised in a very toxic male environment, so you can imagine that he wants to free himself and give players a voice.”
