The Story review – thrilling drama of race, truth and the pursuit of headlines

National Theatre, London Letitia Wright plays the ambitious young reporter seduced into cutting corners with contentious reporting in a brilliantly kinetic productionTracey Scott Wilson’s play follows in the fine tradition of the fast-paced newsroom drama, beginning with the cold-blooded murder of a white schoolteacher by an unknown Black assailant as his pregnant wife watches. Cue moral panic, rolling news and the entry of a fiery young journalist determined to solve the case.That is where the Watergate-style investigative blueprint warps because Yvonne (Letitia Wright, of Black Panther fame) is no simple hero in pursuit of truth. She is an ambitious Black woman, assigned to an enclave of a newspaper reserved for Black journalists. Her imperious editor, Pat (Lorraine Toussaint) is after positive news stories on the Black community while her white editor boyfriend, Jeff (Wilf Scolding) promises her a bigger gig if she proves herself worthy. Continue reading...