"Rising Tides" by Emma White

Set thirty years in the future, Rising Tides offers a glimpse of British life when climate change becomes too great an issue to ignore. People begin to disappear as an electricity curfew is enforced by the government, and a disjointed family settles into its new way of life as the stakes keep getting higher.

The story is such a well written and well observed piece of work that you wouldn't be able to tell from all of the plays that the New Theatre have performed which have been written by the professional playwrights and those written by the students; the quality is that high.

With an almost Orwellian feel of claustrophobia and control, it's a play that is a thought provoking conversation evoking piece of theatre, long after you leave the theatre.

Set in the not too distant future, which also makes it quite scary as it could happen in our lifetime. The idea of a curfew of energy which is shut down at 8pm to preserve the diminishing stores of fuel is not an impossibility.

What is frightening though is the idea to preserve the energy stocks by reducing the amount of users as the council secretly make people and smaller families mysteriously disappear.

This story also reveals that you can't always trust family and friends.

Family is also highlighted and the parallel between the shutdown of energy as well the shutdown of conversation between family members is a clever one. As I said the writing in this play is very, very clever and sharply observed.

The acting, as always is excellent and Arnaud Lacey, Ian Sheard, Niamh Caines, and Daniella Finch keep you hanging on to their every word, especially in the second act when the full realisation of what may be, becomes apparent.

The tech dream team, Joanne Blunt and Sam Osborne are, again as usual incredibly tight with the sound scape, which allows you to visualise in your own mind the images that the actors are describing, and the evocative, stark lighting makes this play even more oppressive and unnerving.

The Nottingham New Theatre already has a large roster of excellent plays and writers from the last few years and this is another to add to that ever growing list, and the new season is almost upon us as well.I for one can't wait.

For anyone who loves the theatre as I do, and loves new writing, The Nottingham New Theatre is bursting with talented people, and often the ticket price is less than a pint in town.