Sheffield based, The Firmans’s Room Theatre company return to the Fringe to bring their latest play by a young and up-coming writer, Luke Holbrook.
It’s a dark, comedic piece that shows a relationship that on the surface seems to be perfect as Nick, successful and wealthy, plans to buy a property in the Yorkshire country side as a surprise for his bubbly girlfriend Sarah. Little do they suspect that country bumpkins Richard and Anna have plans for the couple, tormenting and seducing them, which leads to Sarah deciding to stay with the couple and Nick demands she obey him and leave. Their insecurities and control issues come to the surface in a surreal and violent conclusion.
The performances are respectable, with Yannis Balaskas as Nick giving a surprisingly layered performance that outshines the rest of the cast and its only Henry Jones as Richard who can do aggression and oddness well but never quite convinces when he is meant to be charming the unsuspecting Sarah.
The story slowly builds in tension, and ( if you can ignore the completely unnecessary drum beat that is clearly meant to add to the tension but ends up grating) does have some interesting social comments on masculinity and the need to control the ones we love however it does drop the ball at the last minute. As the violent ending abandons the main story about Nick attempting to rescue Sarah and reveals Richard and Anna to be woefully underwritten. Quite why they torment the couple is never made clear and the details about their own relationship, paper thin.
2/5 
Martin Miller
(4 votes, average: 3.75 out of 5)
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