Maggie & Me, Traverse

 Already a successful memoir in print, this is not a straight stage adaptation of the original, but a look at how Damian Barr faced up to his childhood traumas in writing the book.  

Barr (Gary Lamont) is trying to write his memoir, but having problems facing up to the truth of the traumatic abuse he suffered as a child.  His partner Mike (Douglas Rankine) is sympathetic, but uncertain.  So Barr starts to revisit his past in fantasy enactments, guided by the ghost of the Wicked Witch of Grantham, whose brutal actions dominagted the policital landscape of his formative years.  Notably the vile Section 28.

With Thatcher as his guide to separating fantasy from reality, the adult Barr watches his teenage self interact with friends, family, school, all the while shying away from the events he most needs to revisit if he's to make his memoir honest.  he gets there in the end, of course, but it's an effective illustration of how difficult the process must have been for hom.  Along the way there are plenty of laughs, a bit of song and dance, and moments of pathos and tragedy.  An entertainment show with a dark underside.  

In general this structure works well, if a little forced at times, and the writer writing about his writing is a better idea that a straight retelling of the memoir.  Enjoyable, but not as memorable as the book.