Natalie Wilson’s Rise Up is set in the throngs of the civil rights movement of 1960s America. In search of equality, we join four Freedom Riders on a Greyhound bus and travel from Washington DC to the Deep South, on a journey that is enraging, educational and thought-provoking.

Wilson’s production strikes a healthy balance between education and good story-telling. Told through a poetic script that is graced by occasional interjections of soulful, a cappella singing, we learn about racial segregation through the eyes of the characters that experienced, and fought against it.

The narrative follows CJ (Sam Kacher) as he leaves behind his hometown and his studies to join the Freedom Riders. In a bid to do history justice, the story doesn’t attempt to dodge details of the monstrosities and appalling discrimination faced by the black Americans who were beaten-up and imprisoned, and whose busses were set on fire as they arrived peacefully at their destinations. However, this potentially burdensome plot is frequented with moments of comedy, supplied in the form of all actors simultaneously breaking out of character to mock one another, pretend to forget lines and throw strops over having to wear bows in their hair. As a production playing to an audience made up almost exclusively of teenage school children, these ‘breathers’ seem like a canny and successful tool to prevent the young audience from becoming too bogged down in a heavy plot. The negative of this, however, is that these moments add no value to the play and, if anything, detract from the story.

Wilson’s decision within the first scene for Edward Nkom (a black actor) to play a white American, and for Kacher (a white actor) to begin by playing a black American, immediately dispels stereotypes, bringing the focus to exactly where it should be – on the strong characterisations being brought to life by both actors. Emma Dennis-Edwards and Kimisha Lewis also gave talented, genuine performances and their devotion to telling this story shines through. Particularly impressive are the smooth transitions between roles, as each actor changes part with as little fuss as a shake of the head, or a link of an arm with a new character. Similarly, no unnecessary stress is spent on jazzing up the set or creating elaborate costumes, instead keeping the focus on good storytelling. All four members of the cast are dressed in simple black clothes, whilst the set is made up of metal panels to represent the sides of the Greyhound buses which, in a powerful moment towards the end of the play, are turned around to reveal prison mug shots of the real Freedom Riders.

Instead of leaving us to navigate our way back from events of the past, Wilson’s Rise Up stands firmly in line with Theatre Centre’s mission to empower youth activism through the arts, as it asks us to think about segregation in relation to the present. Once the metal panels have been turned, and the faces of the real Freedom Riders are facing those of the audience, we have enough material and stimulation to get a post-show discussion flowing. Thus, once a message has been delivered about the importance of using your voice to rise up and make change, the question of whether we have achieved equality in the UK today is thrown open to the audience.

Rise Up is playing touring the UK until 4 December. For more information and tickets, see the Theatre Centre website. Photo: Theatre Centre.