THIS quaint yet elegant venue had nearly a full house to watch the latest offering from the well-loved John Godber, in his 25th year with the Hull Truck theatre company.

The playwright, best known for hilarious plays such as Bouncers and Shakers, surprised with Beef – a mostly dark and disturbing work. Dave Cookson is a young lad growing up in a no-hope town in South Yorkshire, desperate to avenge the bullying of his past by “beefing-up” in his home-made gym. His dream is to take on the bullies and become weightlifting champion of the area, if not the world.

Matthew Booth played this one-man show with seemingly boundless talent and energy as he delivered his soliloquy in the form of a one-way conversation to the audience.

His performance was dynamic and faultless, despite having to memorise more than two hours of dialogue. The first half did become quite tedious in the length of speech as he repeatedly discusses the various agonies in his life.

In the second half, Cookson morphs into a 17-stone aggressive version of himself, ready to take on those who had abused him, stolen his girlfriend and made him a laughing stock. However, things never quite work out for the chap as, despite his physical superiority, he continues to feel victimised, is still powerless when challenged by others, and his demons remain.

The underlying brilliance of Godber’s play is that it poses rare questions about males and their psyche. Why do some men want to radically alter their body shape and how does it fundamentally affect their masculinity and confidence, if at all?

Andrea Nadir

■ Beef will be at Darlington Arts Centre on Wednesday, April 29. Tickets are £10.50, on 01325-486555.