Kenneth Emson's England Street, a modern drama exploring race in Britain, was written in 2011 as part of Bike Shed Theatre's script-writing competition on the theme of cultural integration. It brought back to memory many racial riots in British history, from those in Brixton to Bradford as well as the most recent riots of 2011, though interestingly the play was written before those latest riots.

The use of the space, particularly the unexpected entrances, believably transformed the small Burton Taylor studio into the large disused warehouse where the characters set up camp. The staging and play itself reminded me of the dystopian, broken worlds seen in Phillip Ridley plays (Brokenville, Mercury Fur), and the story had something of Willy Russell's Blood Brothers, albeit with masses more grit and rawness.

The acting was unerring and the actors made you really care about and want to get to know their characters, with Ali Watt's performance as Brennan the most mesmerising; whether he was cheekily provoking or just attentively listening to his brother, you couldn't take your eyes off him.

As a one-act, tight-knit and relevant drama England Street would make a perfect show up at the Edinburgh Fringe, or great studio touring show and I hope this production will be seen past its run in Oxford.