Review: The Moth at LOWRY is ‘a poignant reflection on race, war, and identity’

The Moth is a new play by Paul Herzberg which is currently performing its final few shows of its world premiere at LOWRY after touring northern England.

The show was initially produced by Jake Murray, Hannah Ellis Ryan, and Andy Jordan for the Elysium Theatre Company and is also directed by Jake Murray.

The Moth at LOWRY

Presented in the form of intertwining monologues, The Moth is based on a true story that weaves together the meeting of John, son of a refugee who is now an activist working as a journalist in Britain, and Marius, an Afrikaner ex-soldier, on a train to London King’s Cross in 1997.

Bringing the narrative into the present (2025), John and Marius reconnect to relate their lives back to each other nearly thirty years later.

The Moth centres around honest experiences and discussions of race and war; and problematises the recording of history often done by the victorious.

Faz Singhateh portrays John Josana, an established journalist passionate about working people out.

The focus of his perplexion this time is Marius, played by Mickey Cochrane, who seems to be a juxtaposing match for John.

This duo have a unique dynamic, given that the primary thing they share – South Africa – they each have conflicting relationships with.

The excellent Singhateh and Cochrane

Singhateh and Cochrane are excellent in their respective roles, delineating the discomfort experienced between those discussing matters such as Apartheid and the Angolan Border War, especially between a black man and a white man.

Staged within LOWRY’s Aldridge Studio, a small, intimate, black-box space, the set design is simple but effective.

To construct the familiar setting of cross-country train travel in England is a basic desk with a chair for each man either side to demonstrate the table seating arrangements.

The audience watches the characters side on, and the tension of the eye contact held between John and Marius can be not only observed but felt, too.

At the end of the desk is a television screen which faces the audience. On this, as the pair travel, plays a recording of a train’s window view with scenes of the countryside landscape and residential housing gliding by to demonstrate their shared presence and movement.

But when the characters move into their insular monologues the window recording shifts instead to images of their fathers or to provide translations of what is not spoken in English.

The Moth at LOWRY

The Moth finishes its UK run at LOWRY with three shows, from Thursday 10^th April through to Saturday 12^th April 2025.

Standard tickets cost £14 while access tickets are available from £12, which can be purchased following the link here.

The show begins at 8pm and is in two acts, both around 50 minutes each with a 20-minute interval.

Friday 11^th April is the BSL interpreted performance and will also have a post-show Q&A with director Jake Murray and the cast.