The Sydney Theatre Company put on a very short season of Tom Wright and Nicholas Harrington’s play, ‘This is a True Story’ before it was about to transfer for a London season.

With stories about David Hicks and the like flooding the media, ‘This is a True Story’ was very topical theatre.

‘This is a True Story’ tells the sad story of an American man, Howard Neal, who has been held on death row since 1982, after having been found guilty of the murder of his 13 year old niece, Amanda Joy Neal.

Neal has a severe intellectual disability, only having an IQ of 54, with the mind of an eight year old child, trapped in an adult body. The court found him guilty even though the only evidence that linked him to the murder was a confession, allegedly made to a policeman after several days of interogation, and without a lawyer present. The statement was neither written, signed or recorded.

Whilst on Death Row, Hicks has taught himself to read and write and produced an autobiographical manuscript, which comprised 33 hand written pages of phonetically spelt text.
Howard’s lawyers argue that because of Howard’s low IQ that he should not be executed as any execution would constitute a cruel punishment in breach of the 8th amendment of the US Federal Constitution.

Nicholas Harrington’s production does justice to Neal’s harsh story. The play was performed as a solo piece by Tom Wright in the small space of the Richard Wherrett Studio at the Sydney Theatre.
The audience was greeted by a nondescript, frail looking man in a pair of shorts telling his life story. Richard Vabre’s lighting evocatively followed Wright around the stage as he ‘unloaded’.

Neal’s story, typically, is of dysfunction. He was persecuted and mistreated by his father who didn’t like having a disabled son. He spent his life in and out of institutions, was constantly in trouble with the police, and was never able to sustain a relationship with a woman.

Tom Wright’s performance was well focused and touching. The play came to a confronting, haunting conclusion. From centre stage he gets up and goes to the corner of the stage and picks up some handcuffs and chains. He kneels down and aggressively puts the chains and handcuffs on himself. Then he puts his head down, looking disconsolate and defeated. It says it all!