Driftwood – Kiln Theatre, London

Writer: Martina Laird

Director: Justin Audibert

The heat is high and the sun forever low in Driftwood as colonial Trinidad ekes towards self-rule, with the British failing to loosen their grip and the Americans reluctant to allow independence. The familial drama of Driftwood’s prodigal son plot spirals around an inevitable tragedy.

Diamond (Martins Imhangbe), the long-lost son, appears at Alma, a clubhouse owned by Mansion (Roger Ringrose) but run by Pearl (Ellen Thomas), with Ruby (Cat White) gathering designs on running the place. Martina Laird’s script is deft in its control of analogy, playing the torn relationships between Pearl and her children, Ruby and Diamond, against the pain caused by the empire to its colony. The script’s command of theme is matched by its bright humour, especially joyous in a card game scene where the captivating Tom (Ziggy Heath) begins to catch up to the language and customs of his Trinidadian hosts. It is in this scene that the undertones of exploitation begin to bubble up past the more light-hearted mood of Driftwood’s first act.

Shortly after, the stakes in Laird’s script rapidly escalate, and the pacing of the text does not quite match the hastily heightened emotion. Perhaps with subtler direction from Justin Audibert, these peaks of pathos would not feel as out of place. Despite this disjointed feel, the cast commits well to their roles, even when their lines demand a level of drama that the script has not quite earned.

Imhangbe and Thomas are particularly able to generate believable performances with relatively little buildup in a heartfelt final stretch. Unfortunately, this task proves too great a leap for White, whose grand emotive moments fall flatter than the others. Most of this is papered over by a masterful combination of technical factors, with lighting (Simon Spencer), set (Sadeysa Greenaway-Bailey) and sound (Tony Gayle) exchanging flashy moments, all of which come off with aplomb.

Driftwood is a play for the actors, produced with them at the heart of things, and the chemistry and tension between Thomas, Heath and Imhangbe is undeniably riveting. The push and pull between American influence and the will for freedom from colonial shackles is smartly written and performed with electricity. Despite some rushed beats in its story, Driftwood is a clever family drama that’s worth watching for those three performances alone.

Runs until 4 July 2026