MedFringe 2026
Maisie by Roger Goldsmith
Steve Blacker-Barrowman
Venue: Spotlites Theatre, Chatham
Festival: MedFringe
Low Down
A one man, one-act play by Roger Goldsmith, previously presented at the Bread and Roses Theatre in November 2019. Revived by actor Steve Blacker-Barrowman for the first Medfringe, for one performance at Spotlites Theatre, Chatham on 5th July 2026.
Review
With a run time of fifty-five minutes, and a text, delivered by the main protagonist at a speedy pace, you might be forgiven for thinking that ‘Maisie’ by Roger Goldsmith, is an easy-breezy walk-in-the-park. But the lightness of the delivery and execution of this piece, are exactly what make it so profoundly, emotionally hard-hitting.
In essence, the play gives us a man’s view of the grief and desolation felt around the loss of a child. And this man? Our protagonist is presented simply as ‘an ordinary bloke’, framed from the start as a working man, surrounded by painting & decorating tools. From the very start, he is ‘just getting on with it’, packing up the ladders, tables and kit just used to complete his tasks. And the ease of that framing sums up in a compound way, what is really going on here. ‘Maisie’ strips bare the coping mechanisms of the ‘ordinary bloke’.
Steve Blacker-Barrowman’s delivery brings little Maisie to life with minimal personation – just enough to conjure up the funny, direct stance and conversation of a young child, in contrast to the amused, deadpan but sincere responses of her adult, so that we too, acutely feel the loss of this bright soul. The action places us firmly in ‘bloke-world’ with random meetings in cafe’s between men bonding over the emotional impact of life events and choices.
Following the devastating event, our main character eschews counselling, not because of any particular male pride or ego about ‘sharing with a stranger’, but rather because he knows, with a little help from his friends, his way to get through is simply to put his head down, push on and feel his grief in every action of his everyday life. And voila – the work is done, the wall is painted, his contribution made, the world kept on course for all of us, by the ‘ordinary bloke’.
From the first appearance, the prose comes at us swiftly and it takes a moment to ‘get your ear in’. While clearer definition might help at occasional moments, our protagonist is drawing us in – in keeping with the overall messaging in the play – not demonstrating outwards unpacking. The job gets done in his own, uncompromising way. The beautifully realised ending involves, of necessity, a female perspective. Not Maisie, not the ex-wife, but another character, minor, but fundamental to the plotting. It speaks volumes that Goldsmith leaves final, positive validation of male actions to a female voice.
The outstanding marriage of Blacker-Barrowman’s delivery and the textual crafting of writer Roger Goldsmith combine to bring us all along on the devastating emotional journey. ‘No good deed goes unpunished’ is not a warning here, but a cyclical theatrical conceit with overtones of a Steinbeck novella – we are all connected, we are all one – and shit happens.
