"Twelve Angry Men" by Reginald Rose.

Derby Theatre.

The 1957 film is based on a 1954 play made for television. The play begins during the summer sometime in the 1950s. Twelve men have adjourned to the jury room to begin deliberating their verdict.

The judge has instructed them that their decision must be unanimous. As it is a first-degree murder trial, a guilty conviction could probably mean the death penalty. The defendant is an eighteen-year-old boy from a poor area of New York City who is accused of murdering his father with a knife. Almost all the jurors seem convinced that the teenager is guilty. When they do their first vote, surprisingly there is one ''not guilty vote.''

I have never seen the film so had no idea what eventually happens. I now want to see the film.

I'll admit that I have never concentrated on a piece of theatre as much as I concentrated on this play. Not because it was difficult to follow, because it wasn't, but because of the script, the incredible performances and the unravelling of the initial decision.

It was like taking your Christmas lights out of the loft and finding them all knotted and entangled, and then slowly unknotting everything, untangling the mess to end up with a more simpler thread.

Every turn picked apart every bit of evidence to show another option. But was this unpicking, presenting another viable option enough to swing the decision? Well, if you know the film, you'll know what the outcome is. I did not, so was completely intrigued and fixed on taking in every word from every character.

I've never been called up for jury service, and again looking behind the locked doors of the jury room and hearing the arguments, the alternative explanations as well as the dissection of what evidence had been presented, and the logic of what could have been the true story, just filled me with wide-eyed glee as the story was told, and re-told in a different light.

The jurors are listed just as Juror 1 to 12 with no character names given.

Juror 1, The Foreman is played by Jeffrey Harmer.

Juror 2, The New Guy, is played by Paul Lavers

Tristian Gemmill plays Juror 3 - The Father.

Juror 4, The Broker is played by Owen Oldroyd.

Juror 5, The Nurse, is played by Samarge Hamilton.

Gary Webster plays Juror 6, The Painter and Decorator.

Michael Greco is Juror 7, The Yankee Fan.

Jason Merrells is Juror 8, The Architect.

Juror 9, The Pensioner is played by Paul Beech.

Gray O'Brien is Juror 10, The Deal Maker

Juror 11, The Watchmaker is played by Kenneth Jay.

Ben Nealon plays Juror 12, The Ad Man.

Adam Phillip Bloom plays The Guard.

As a cast they were all fantastic; all with very different personalities, but none of them out-playing the other. With any group of people, thrown together by a third party, as in a bench of jurors, there will be the inevitable clashes, and the quieter ones will be picked on by the more belligerent characters.

Tristian Gemmell, as the protagonist, succeeded in winding most of the team up, but the reason for his bullish attitude and opinions come to the surface at the end.

Jason Merrells, at the opposite end of the scale, presents a calm collection of alternative attitudes.

Directed by Christopher Haydon. The Associate Director is Tim Welton, with Design by Michael Pavelka, Lighting Design by Chris Davey, and Sound Design by Andy Graham.

The play is staged by Michael Pavelka. One room with a twelve-seater table in the centre which slowly revolves as the play progresses. This you may not notice because it revolves so slowly. This could be subliminal to reflect the speed at which some of these angry men's opinions are turned. Maybe I am thinking too deep!

Here is a play that comes around rarely. A play that makes you think just how fragile a life can be when it's in the hands of twelve angry men; an anger that could overcome and cloud a judgement without the calmness of common sense and logic.

You too will be as transfixed in your seat as I was, especially if this is your first experience of this piece of theatre.

"Twelve Angry Men" is at Derby Theatre until Saturday 3 February.