Through It All Together review – Leeds United drama tackles big themes

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"'Through It All Together' Explores Themes of Fandom and Family Amidst Leeds United's Journey Back to the Premier League"

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In the play "Through It All Together," playwright Chris O’Connor captures the profound emotional connection between Leeds United fans and their beloved football club. The narrative centers around Howard and Sue, a long-time married couple and dedicated Leeds season ticket holders, portrayed by Reece Dinsdale and Shobna Gulati. The couple faces the challenges of Howard's dementia, with Sue managing her husband's condition while their daughter, Hazel, navigates her own emotions regarding the situation. The play intertwines their personal struggles with the backdrop of Leeds United's tumultuous journey back to the Premier League, particularly during a season marred by the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdowns. While O’Connor's affection for the team and its iconic manager, Marcelo Bielsa, is palpable, the play does not fully delve into the complexities of either narrative, leaving some character arcs and storylines feeling incomplete or underdeveloped.

The production features humorous performances from actors like Everal A Walsh and Dean Smith, who embody various roles from enthusiastic podcasters to club executives, adding levity to the otherwise serious themes of the play. The set design, including a stained glass window of Bielsa, reinforces the reverence fans hold for the manager, echoing sentiments reminiscent of Liverpool's legendary Bill Shankly. While the play resonates deeply with devoted Leeds supporters, it offers a somewhat superficial experience for those less familiar with the club's history. Ultimately, "Through It All Together" serves as both a homage to the powerful bond of fandom and a reflection on the personal trials faced by individuals and families dealing with dementia, capturing the essence of what it means to be a part of Leeds United's journey.

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Leeds United fan and playwright Chris O’Connor is clearlyShankly-ianin his belief that football is more important than life or death. He lays out his argument in Through It All Together, which is at once a paean to his football club, a contention that fandom is a glue that binds with more ferocity than a Norman Hunter tackle, and an appeal for the deification of the manager who led Leedsback into the Premier Leaguein 2020.

Where Liverpool had Bill Shankly – recently given his own moment in the stage spotlight in the moving and epicRed or Dead– the Whites had Marcelo Bielsa, or El Loco as O’Connor reminds us, the nickname with which the Argentinian arrived at Elland Road. If there were any doubt as to the regard in which fans like O’Connor hold the manager, a stained glass window bearing the image of Bielsa rises above the stage of Amanda Stoodley’s set.

At the heart of Through It All Together are long-time married couple and Leeds season ticket holders Howard and Sue, played by Reece Dinsdale and Shobna Gulati. Howard is just about living with dementia, wife Sue is coping with it admirably, while daughter Hazel is either in denial or overcompensating when it comes to her dad’s condition.

The trials of having the condition, or living with a family member with it, are intertwined with the season before and the season during which Bielsa’sLeeds Unitedsecured promotion – one which was plagued by Covid and lockdown. But the play never lands firmly on either story. Howard’s dementia doesn’t progress to its usual conclusion, leaving Dinsdale, a fine actor, with a curtailed journey, while Bielsa’s two-season odyssey back to the Premier League is told in snippets that the Leeds faithful in the audience clearly loved, but the uninitiated will find have the depth of a highlight reel.

Everal A Walsh and Dean Smith, in roles from podcasters to fans in the pub to club higher-ups, are uniformly hilarious in the very amusingly sketched scenes in which they appear. The play, like the club, will have its fans, but will mean most to those who are already marching on together.

AtLeeds Playhouseuntil 19 July

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Source: The Guardian