Based on the 1975 play by king of the neurotics Woody Allen, this post modern piece of theatre is all about (deep breath) a play within a play written about a play that doesn’t as yet have an ending and so as to figure out the ending they must ask the audience of the play how it must end! It follows the two leads, Diabetes and Hepatitis, one an actor the other a play-writer as they debate in both ancient Greece and modern day Manhattan, the ethics of storytelling.
Woody Allen was on the top of his game when he wrote this, asking physical and metaphysical questions about life, the nature of storytelling and if God exists and the ramifications if it is true. Despite the head spinning subject matter UCLU Runaground do a great job of keeping the material funny, smart and despite Woody Allen casually throwing more and more fantastic elements into the mix such as a cameo from Groucho Marx and Zeus no less, they manage to ground the production not running with the idea of silliness over acting, a lesson that many young Fringe acts have yet to learn.
With a running time of just 45 minutes, this short, sharp production will have you laughing from start to finish and thinking long and hard about the questions that Woody Allen raises all those years ago but are still as relevant as ever.
4/5 
Martin Miller
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