BLUE SKY
Sherman Cymru, Cardiff
Tues 13-Sat 17 Nov
Recent times have seen us question the many power battles fought between investigative journalism and the government. The Telegraph exposed the expenses scandal and News Of The World resorted to criminality in the ‘line of duty’. But who really holds the power?
Blue Sky, a new political thriller, questions what really happens in secluded airports deep in the pre-dawn countryside, and also how much we really want to know about our government’s covert operations.
Addressing the role of investigative journalism as a tool to expose truths, the play tackles the issue of extraordinary rendition. Writer Clare Bayley explains that she “was amazed, writing this play, how few people really knew what had been going on around so called extraordinary rendition,” which, typically associated with the US, refers to the detention and transportation of suspects from one country to another for the purpose of interrogation (and in some cases torture) outside normal sovereign laws.
In a world of push button publishing, citizen journalism is taking hold, and Jane, Blue Sky’s determined journalist must handle aspiring blogger Ana whilst she investigates her hunch of a story involving plane spotter Ray (Ana’s father). What is collective responsibility, and should Jane as an investigative journalist allow Ana to blur the lines of tradition with her blogging? Whilst Jane investigates, a man goes missing and no-one knows where he’s gone. Tickets: £12-£14. Info: 029 2064 6900 / www.shermancymru.co.uk (RW)