David Mamet’s Oleanna - the name comes from a 19th Century Norwegian folk-song and is a metaphor for somewhere, anywhere, where the past can be forgotten and a new life begins - is a thought-provoking play. It was well received at Kendal’s Brewery Arts Centre last week.

Mamet draws his characters with meticulous care. John is a middle-aged professor alone in his office, and his student, Carol, is the vulnerable, confused young woman seeking guidance. Or is she?

The playwright, whose credits include the 1984 Pulitzer prize-vulnerability winning Glengarry Glen Ross, turns the tables completely, with stunning abruptness, to expose the professor’s own vulnerability when confronted by Carol’s unexpected PC agenda. They had met alone and what was the real intent of his actions? Had he merely offered, as her claimed, to help her with her studies?

Chris MacDonnell, as John, plunged from a tutor in command of all the world’s certainties to a broken man facing a very uncertain future. While Amy Bayless’ Carol visibly grew in confidence as she challenged John’s established order.

Even the violence of the third and last scene was open to interpretation. Stripped of his power and dignity and in response to career-ending provocation, John finally hits Carol. Yet John’s violence only serves to underpin Carol’s contention that, without fancy words and establishment conventions, the principles of John’s civilisation, and our own, are still rooted in much baser building blocks.

The London Classic Theatre Company’s inaugural national tour left a challenging impression - an undoubted triumph for director Michael Cabot."