DUST

It’s a life story performed as a tour de force by McArdle, as our hero transforms from arrogant youth to thoughtful pensioner, half surprised to have survived so long. It’s a story of working-class life, the kind of life which disappeared when the pits did. It does not romanticise that life, but bears witness to it with honour and passion. Susan Mansfield

The Scotsman - Susan Mansfield

Dust is an absorbing, emotionally rich production that demonstrates exactly what can be achieved through exceptional writing, thoughtful direction and a commanding solo performance. If you are still wondering whether to book a ticket, stop dithering. The answer is simple: yes, you should! ★★★★★
“A powerful and beautifully performed piece of theatre that proves one actor can create an entire world.”
As Dust has received a five-star review from Theatre Village, it also becomes an official nominee for The Satchel of Stars Award.

Theatre Village

‘DUST’s flyer is festooned with five-star ratings: deservedly so. It’s a gut-punch of a play, and Craig McCardle’s viscerally expressive performance stays with you like an emotional fat-lip. By turns humorous and heartbreaking, his performance flits from character to character, switching emotions in a heartbeat. Charlaina Thompson’s powerfully evocative script and direction pull no punches, either. Politics, we are told, is for the rich; survival is for the poor. But the looming spectre of the post-war politics that defined – and devastated – the North haunts every laboured, dust-choked breath of the play. As our protagonist moves through life – boxer, soldier, miner – we witness the highs and lows of his life down the pits, emblematic of so many who found themselves ground to dust.
Pleasance Courtyard, until 30 Aug.
tw rating 5/5 | [Andy Leask]

Three Weeks Theatre Andy Leask

PICK OF THE FRINGE MERVYN STUTTERS
Outstanding! JUST GO SEE IT!

MERVYN STUTTERS

GO SEE IT!

INSTA REVIEW EDFRINGE

Only a few props are used, with Thompson’s script and McArdle’s acting bringing the tale to life. These props are used effectively: a walking stick is slickly transformed into a gun, then a beer tap before it’s used as a cane. A helmet, a flat cap and a headscarf are also used at various points to show different characters.

Raw and tender, DUST is not a show that you’ll forget easily. It’s full of heart, and is a touching tribute to not only the seven men who tragically died in the accident, but all of those who worked in the mines.

Recommended Drink: a Pint…or two…or three of beer.

BINGE FRINGE - Ellen Leslie

Both the writer and the performer have close ties to the mining communities of west Yorkshire – Thompson grew up in a mining family near Doncaster and McArdle’s own grandfather worked at Lofthouse colliery alongside the men who perished in the disaster. That personal connection to the material ensures that every word, every emotion, every story, every flash of dry Northern humour is entirely authentic. It is a production that is admirable on every level and in so many different ways – as a piece of theatre, as a social document and, above all, as a heartfelt tribute to the miners of west Yorkshire and their families.

Yorkshire Post