Hi Vis

Eight years ago I lived in the West End of Leicester and then it was a slightly shabby end of town with an overpowering population of students and ethnic minorities rubbing along side by side. This mishmash failed to cohere into anything more than a jumble of communities with no single identity. Then came Tescos and all of a sudden people started to look again at this backwater at the bottom of Narborough Road. Heavy investment in clearing old factories and building prestigious student and young people's accommodation and the time was ripe to inject some culture back into the area.
The Western pub was, when I lived in the locality, a grim, old fashioned bar with no atmosphere and few customers. Today it is a lively community venue with, joy of joys, a thriving upstairs theatre. Open for barely a year the performance space has blossomed into a rich and varied source of entertainment.
My first visit was to see Robert Cohen's self penned show about the trials and tribulations of one Quint, ex-soldier and now traffic warden, named for the character in Jaws. With a wide array of malapropisms and mangled corporate-speak, Quint struggles to maintain a sense of worth in the world of Parking Enforcement. Raging against the world as he serves out his enforced grounding in the Training Room, Quint tries desperately to be PC but repeatedly trips over his feet as he side steps his accidental bigotry. Pathos and comedy mix as the evening progresses.
Armed only with his High Vis jacket, a flip chart and an array of marker pens, Quint is isolated out of the way of a sniper, supposedly stalking the High Street picking off Traffic Wardens.
Channeling both Leonard Rossiter and Alan Partridge, Cohen expertly draws a picture of an exasperated man kept from his own small kingdom, the vehicle strewn streets of his town. The iniquities of his life wind him up further and further until he is forced to withdraw and rest.
Robert Cohen's expertise extends beyond the script and he expertly ad libs, drawing the audience into the world of Quint. Be warned don't arrive late or sit in the front rows. You will be abused!

First published in Western Gazette
© Paul Towers 16/11/2013