The Shawshank Redemption – His Majesty’s Theatre, Aberdeen

Writer: Stephen King
Adaptor: Owen O’Neill and Dave Johns
Director: David Esbjornson

The story of The Shawshank Redemption is well known to most; either from having read the Stephen King novel or from having seen the blockbuster Hollywood movie. So it is interesting to see the story brought to life on stage.

Shawshank, or The Shank as it is known, is a high security prison. The story focuses on a young man accused of killing his wife and the man she’s having an affair with. Andy Dufresne (Joe McFadden) is adamant he is innocent and sets to making a life for himself in the prison. He has to avoid “the sisters” who like to gang rape the pretty boys and make himself useful to the officials in charge of the prison with his financial knowledge from his previous life.

The staging is very cleverly designed and used. It is made easier by everything being set in the prison, the main stage is the prison yard with the cells around it. A partition wall is used to either show Andy’s prison cell with posters on the wall or the wood panelling of the Governor’s office. Another important set is the prison library which our protagonist manages to get set up through helping “cook the books” of the Shank. Tables and chairs are moved by the actors as we go from scene to scene.

The lighting, designed by Chris Davey, is one of the stars of the show. It is so cleverly used in various scenes, most notably the chess game between Andy and Bogs Diamond (Sean Kingsley), one of “the sisters” who has never lost a game before.

The adaptation to stage works well, as we are caught up in the emotions of various characters’ stories. An old timer known as Red (Ben Onwukwe) is the narrator filling in any gaps from the narrative. He is a wonderful actor and we cannot help feeling for him as he keeps trying to get probation. The interrelationships between the characters are incredibly engaging and emotive. Obviously there are some hard hitting topics covered as life in jail is not an easy ride, so this play is definitely not suitable for younger viewers.

Runs until 11 April 2026 | Image: Jack Merriman