'Wildefire' Hampstead Theatre **

Should playwrights be writing pieces of theatre about the emergency services, and how their competence can become conflicted after a dreadful experience on the job? The Hampstead Theatre's recent production of Ray Williams’ ‘Wildefire’ conveys the life of one particular policewoman, but one found the play to be truly disappointing, and the characterisations were off-colour for one's fondness. ‘Wildefire’ is set within a South London council estate, where crime is exceedingly recognisable, and that the treatment of the police appears tense constantly. Moreover, we are welcomed with the presence of fiery policewoman, Gail Wilde, whose sizzling persona has given her the nickname, “Wildefire” by her fellow male colleagues, but due to the contemporary world of modern policing, it seems that the characteristic may not be as professional and appropriate to ensure her work is completed with attentiveness. In the course of one of our investigations is to see whether Kristal, a rather tattered young woman on the council estate is in fact suffering from domestic abuse, Gail startlingly mentions that Kristal should intimidate her partner in the hope that he will hurt her, and an enquiry can commence. It suggests that Gail is particularly corrupt, and her morals are non-existent, this includes her role as a wife/mother as she frequently misses her daughters’ football match, which upsets her husband, and with such abandonment as one of the family, he requests for a divorce. On the contrary, during one of the intense riots on the council estate, Gail’s working acquaintance, Spence is brutally murdered, which leads to Gail to instil a verse of rage, and she is on the defensive relentlessly after such an event. Williams’ narrative is rather disjointed as it seems that he tries to force too many scenarios into 85 minutes, and I could not fully engage with Gail’s journey as there are far too many characters onstage. One found the performances by the company of ‘Wildefire’ are vastly satisfactory as it looked too dull, and somewhat boring. Lorraine Stanley is unbecoming as the rampant, Gail; especially the moment where we see her unprofessionalism display with Kristal, as well as her scenes with her husband where their marriage is at the final straw. Ricky Champ is somewhat mediocre as Gail’s work companion, Spence; explicitly when he's massacred through one of the riots, in addition, the aftermath of Gial who comforts him in his final moments were quite touching, but not that emotive as you'd hope it would be. Sharlene Whytte is suitable as Spence’s adoring wife, Maxine; clearly when she's grieving after her husband's death, and the moments where she sings at his funeral is moving, to a certain degree. Maria Aberg's direction is passable here as the understanding of the dangerous employment within the police service has been explored with an acceptable level of precision and interrogation. Naomi Dawson's design is increasingly insufficient here for a Hampstead Theatre production, as one found it incredibly challenging to focus on one specific element at one time due to the troublesome concept and comprehensive analysis of the actual subject. Overall, one found the experience of ‘Wildefire’ to be inadequate, and not very worthy for the Hampstead Theatre. Thank goodness it's only on for a limited run.