Desert does not attempt to delve too much into the ethics of his leaking of classified US military material to Wikileaks in 2010. Rather it attempts to get inside the head of this misfit.
It is obvious that Manning, Bradley or Chelsea, should never have been in the Army, let alone as an Intelligence Officer. His deep psychological flaws should have been flagged up the minute he applied to join up. He was always going to be susceptible to all sorts of pressures to conform or rebel.
Hugely intelligent, the young Bradley was detached from mainstream society by virtue of the alcoholism of both his parents and compounded by his gayness. His geeky obsession with technology only served to further isolate him.
That fierce intellect and obsession with computer technology was what led the US Army to blindly push Manning into the security section of the military. That same intellect and obsession was also what led Manning to disclose what he thought were deficiencies and inadequacies in the way the US Army and Congress were acting overseas.
Desert dramatises Manning's time awaiting Military Court Marshall and subsequent conviction through the well accepted premis of introducing a fictitious narrator figure to move the narrative along. The totally unreasonable time kept waiting for his court appearance allows his mental state to further unravel and we see clearly how he is driven to become almost schizophrenic. Throughout his military service Manning has expressed a desire to undergo gender reassignment and it was upon his conviction that he finally began the process to become a she.
Giles Roberts portrays Bradley Manning by turns politicised and vulnerable, over-confident and defenseless, aggressor and victim. Lucy Farrett is tasked with playing his inquisitor and confidante. Both actors use the stage admirably and conjure up Manning's cell, the desert and various court premises for a spellbound audience.
First published in Western Gazette
© Paul Towers 24/3/2014
© Paul Towers 24/3/2014
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