Review: CONTEH, Liverpool's Royal Court

Written by Aron Julius and directed by Mark Womack, Conteh is a powerful and emotive drama about the life of one of Liverpool’s sporting icons. Julius stars as boxer John Conteh, who at 24 years old became the light heavyweight champion of the world. Julius’ script tells Conteh’s story, both in and outside the boxing ring, in a brilliantly written script that is delivered by a phenomenal cast.

Joining Julius are Mark Moraghan as Conteh’s trainer George and Helen Carter in multiple roles including Joan and Marianne. Completing the cast are Amber Blease as Veronica and ZackLevene, who is an incredible actor in a variety of roles in the production, including Conteh’s brother Tony and promoter Don King. Each cast member delivers excellent performances - a feeling also shared by the audience who gave the cast a standing ovation at the end of the show.

Opening in a Wembley dressing room, the audience are introduced to Conteh as he prepares for a boxing match. The set cleverly switches between the dressing room and the boxing ring, with the sides of the boxing ring folding together as the location changes from the arena to Conteh’s home.

While the set changes help to seamlessly move the story from scene to scene, the staging felt like it could be tightened. There were a few times where the action in the story took place largely on one side of the stage, particularly in act one, rather than using the entire space. However, this seemed to rectify itself in act two and the pace of the production flowed very well. The stunning seventies style visuals created by Jamie Jenkin - from newspaper headlines to backdrops of houses - also keep the pace of the show moving quickly.

Julius is an exceptionally talented writer and actor. This is particularly evident in the scenes including Conteh’s moment by moment analysis of boxing matches, delivered alongside action choreographed brilliantly by fight and movement Director Rebecca Wilson. From breaking the fourth wall and talking to the audience, to heartwarming moments shared in flashbacks between Conteh and Tony, Julius’ performance engages you from start to finish.

Amber Blease, who plays Conteh’s wife Veronica, also delivers an outstanding performance throughout the show, particularly during one scene where Veronica is speaking to a modelling agency, which also received a rapturous round of applause from the audience. In every moment, her physicality and tone of voice perfectly communicates all the emotions of that scene - and even in the moments when there is no dialogue - her performance tells the story exceptionally well with each glance and movement.

In a night that also saw legendary boxing icon himself John Conteh join the cast onstage, the production is a must-see.