This isn’t a sponsored post.
BrumHour saw The Shawshank Redemption at the invite of The Alexandra.

For Brum Radio’s Interval Theatre, Joe McFadden talked about his role in this UK touring production. Listen below:

By Dave Massey

This production contains strong language, themes of prison violence and serious sexual assult.

The Shawshank Redemption at The Alexandra: Review

⭐⭐⭐⭐An appealing prison drama.

Directed by David Esbjornson, adapted for the stage by Owen O’Neill and Dave Johns, from the short novel by Stephen King

Andy (Joe McFadden) arrives at Shawshank Prison protesting his innocence in the murder of his wife and her lover. He forms ongoing connections to the men around him, including Ellis (Ben Onwukwe) and Brooksie (Kenneth Jay). His skills in tax management draw the attention of Warden Stammas (Bill Ward).

Told mainly in narration by Ben Onwukwe‘s Ellis, this two-hour production (plus a twenty-minute interval) covers a period of almost twenty years.

The set is one static three-walled double-height communal area of the prison, and then the walls drop down to represent the warden’s office and Andy’s cell. There are desks, books, and beds to give the vibe of the prison and sounds from the outside complete the soundscape, plus there are short excerpts from music of each era to represent the 1950s and 1960s.

Ben Onwukwe is excellent as Ellis, working hard to keep everyone on side all the time. Joe McFadden is great as Andy, wronged and trapped in his situation. Bill Ward gets to show his character’s full range later in the production, willing to do anything to get what he wants.

I really enjoyed this production, and it has been many years since I saw the film version. There were plenty of plot elements that I’d forgotten about. Younger people in the audience might be surprised by the tone and language of the harsh mid-20th-century environment.

An appealing prison drama. The Shawshank Redemption is at The Alexandra until 30th May 2026. Book tickets here: atgtickets.com/shows/the-shawshank-redemption/the-alexandra-theatre-birmingham.