Derngate (not ‘The Derngate’, just ‘Derngate’) has been reconfigured for this production, transformed into a traverse seating arrangement with the stage comprising a skatepark. This came as a surprise to even some of the regulars – as people were filing in, a ticket booker was bemused to find the seats for his party were in the front row: he was quite adamant he didn’t pick the front row when he placed the booking. But with the audience sat on either side of the stage, there were effectively two front rows. That half the audience was sat facing the other half did not, in the end, prove distracting in the slightest.
There’s some familiarity in this play as Aidan (an engaging Daniel Rainford) scrolls through social media – not exactly an uncommon occurrence to people who have a smartphone and some downtime. Indeed, I found myself looking at socials myself for a while, as the train I had intended to get bound for London Euston after the show was cancelled. We look, we smile at what’s pleasant and frown and what’s not, and then continue with our lives. But the young and impressionable Aidan finds himself taking action based on what he sees and hears from a man who calls himself Hugo Bang (Danny Hatchard), an influencer as misogynistic as Andrew Tate. Tate is sometimes referred to as ‘Top G’ – which is apparently a slang abbreviation for ‘Top Gangster’. My go-to point of reference for slang phrases, Urban Dictionary, suggests it ultimately means ‘Top Groomer’, which is commensurate with how things turn out in this play.
A large ‘internet ensemble’, made up of twenty-five third-year acting students from the University of Northampton, brings to life a large range of characters that Aidan comes across in his online scrolling – everyone from Donald Trump to Peppa Pig. It’s all such a whirlwind, and so convincing, that at one point I wondered if I would have been better off staying home and going on TikTok for myself. Without being preachy about it, the pitfalls of AI-generated content are made clear, with sometimes amusing results.
Radlands Plaza is an actual skatepark in Northampton, and the script has other local references which almost anyone who has lived in the area for long enough will recognise. I can’t, alas, vouch for the authenticity of some of the vocabulary used – the programme did not come with a glossary, and I don’t know if the youngsters in the audience were chortling away because the ‘yoofspeak’ was accurate, or far removed from the manner in which teenagers actually speak to one another. At one point, though, the eighteen-year-old Aidan is as confused as the rest of us, telling Grace (Emily Coates), “No offence, but I have no idea what you’re on about.”
The play is careful to give some nuance – for instance, Hugo Bang isn’t always wrong. He talks about people taking responsibility for their own lives – to stop blaming ‘society’ or indeed anyone else. Elsewhere, Charlie (Finn Samuels), the posh boyfriend of Aidan’s friend Mia (Fanta Barrie), expresses some of his own male bravado, revealing that ‘Top G’ behaviour is not restricted to certain social classes. Completing the set of main characters is Dave (David Schaal), a generation older than everyone else on stage, with his own backstory. An entertaining yet thoughtful piece of theatre, with wide-reaching implications far beyond the seemingly benign consumption of social media output.
Review by Chris Omaweng
Aidan’s lost. His best mate’s starting uni, his mum can’t get out of bed, and his new side hustle has questionable legality. Meanwhile, he’s stacking shelves at the supermarket wondering if this is all he’s cut out for. He’s got hobbies – hanging out at the skatepark and doom scrolling his days away.
As he’s lapping up the algorithm, ‘Hugo Bang’ appears with the promise to help Aidan become the alpha he was born to be. Will Hugo Bang help Aidan get his life back on track, or will he lead Aidan to a darker, more dangerous place?
CAST
Mia – Fanta Barrie
Grace – Emily Coates
Hugo Bang – Danny Hatchard
Aidan – Daniel Rainford
Charlie – Finn Samuels
Dave – David Schaal
Internet Ensemble – Chris Adekanle. Hayley Adele, Ben Bayes, Aimee Bidwell, Lola Blacker, Brooke Bonney, Luke Collins, Harry Day, Abigail Field, Sabrina Gricolat, Selin Hara, Larna Hope, Sadie Hylott, Kane Simon Hunter, Robyn Khasan, Benjamin Lawley, Billy Mason, Kimberley Nakai Mandizha, Poppy Puttock, Louise Rae, Kit Robson, Amelia Ryan, Annabel Sherring, Liv Waters, Michael Wilde
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer – Samson Hawkins
Director – Jesse Jones
Set & Costume Designer – Rebecca Brower
Lighting Designer – Rory Beaton
Sound Designer – Benjamin Grant
Movement Director – Monica Nicolaides
Fight Director – Kiel O’Shea
Dramaturg – Lauren Mooney
Casting Director – Kristian Wall
Voice and Dialect Coach – Gemma Boaden
Associate Director – Kitty Benford
Assistant Director – Amelia Michaels
Additional Dramaturgical Support – Andy Routledge
Scooter Training – Aiden McCrystal and Jayden Sharman
TOP Gs LIKE ME
Royal & Derngate, Northampton
23 February to 7 March 2026
