Unlikely source for message in a bottle

A report into plastic use has inspired theatre group, writes DAVE FREAK

- DAVE FREAK

IT'S fair to say that government report The Sustainable Plastics Policy Commission: Key Findings is not an obvious source for a new play, but Stan's Cafe do enjoy a challenge.

Fresh from an energetic collaboration with Bath Spa University that saw them restyle Shakespeare's Macbeth for the age of CCTV and mass surveillance, the Birmingham theatre company are back home to present another bold literary stage adaption.

Produced by the University Of Birmingham's Birmingham Plastics Network, the report acknowledges that although plastic has made an immeasurable contribution to our lives, with it comes a significant global economic, environmental, social and ecological cost that will require systemic change to address. “The sun must set on polluting resources,” it concludes.

“It’s a very beautiful document and very legible, but not something that we're all going to rush to read,” confesses Stan's Cafe’s James Yarker, who was approached by the network after they'd seen the company’s 2023 show, All Our Money, which turned the complex intricacies of Birmingham City Council's finances into a comedy starring a bear foot-ball mascot.