A two hour play about the fortunes of the British railway since privatisation, the script including interviews with politicians, civil servants and chief executives - on paper, David Hare's The Permanent Way might seems like a very dry and serious way to spend your evening. But don't let this put you off. While undoubtedly serious, it is also a hugely compelling and thought-provoking piece of political theatre.

The mood is set by an arresting visual metaphor. An old fashioned train poster projected onto the backdrop of the stage, depicting a steam locomotive forging its way through a golden English countryside, is unexpectedly animated. A golden age of the railway is evoked - then, with the blast of a smoke machine, brought dramatically into the present, where a nightmarish tale of corporate negligence, political short-sightedness and human tragedy will unfold.

The play begins at breakneck speed as a group of dissatisfied commuters, brandishing newspapers, launch into every commuter's favourite topic of conversation: what's wrong with the railways. This is followed by a series of interweaving monologues by three senior Whitehall, Treasury and City figures who narrate, from the inside, the privatisation of British Rail. The scene is now set, and the play's principal subject matter comes to the fore: the disasters of Southall, Ladbroke Grove, Hatfield and Potter's Bar.

Testimonies from victims, the bereaved, an investigating police officer and a campaigning lawyer express the anger felt by those who were caught up in these tragedies. The inadequacies of the court cases and public enquiries which ensued are challenged. The less sympathetic face of this story is given a hearing also; the managing director of Railtrack, for example, is allowed to defend himself against those who painted him as a murderer, and we do sympathise - to a point.

If this all sounds a bit heavy, I should point out that there is also a constant vein of humour running throughout the play, and I laughed out loud more frequently than during many comedies I have seen. The biggest laughs were for rather cruel but very accurate lampoons of John Prescott and 'A Leading Entrepreneur' who runs a train company (no prizing for guessing who this is).

The Permanent Way is a powerful indictment of the state of British political life and of the management of its transport infrastructure. David Hare's left-wing politics are clear: he blames the state of the British railways on their misguided privatisation and the 'balkanisation' of its operation by different companies with short term franchises. This familiar case is made compellingly, and if you agree with Hare, you will be nodding your head emphatically, even as you wipe away your tears. If you find fault with his analysis, you may find much to object to in this play, and its opportunistic enlistment of the emotions to make an essentially polemical point. Yet surely this is what any good piece of rhetoric does - and this play is, above all, an exemplarily energetic, stirring and persuasive piece of dramatic rhetoric.

George Tew (13/5/04)