Advice for the Young at Heart

Set the 2011 London riots in the context of the riots in Notting Hill, 1958, Advice for the Young at Heart is a brand new play from Roy Williams.

Don’t ever be that way, like your brother. No matter what the excuse or provocation, don’t be like that. It’s 2011 and 1958 and London is rioting. Candice is ordered by her gang-leading boyfriend to lure Clint into a honeytrap. Haunted by her grandfather’s mistakes, she stands at a crossroads. Will she do as she’s told, or will she learn to be true to herself before history repeats itself? This modern tale for riotous times spans three generations, exploring race, family and misguided loyalty. The riots of 2011 provoked comment on the morality of youth and the codes by which they live. Advice for the Young at Heart digs into the question of whether this is a new phenomenon or one that young people have struggled with for generations. Using two simultaneous plots taking place during the 1958 Notting Hill race riots and the riots of 2011, Roy Williams asks how a new generation of teenagers can learn from the mistakes made by a previous generation.