Date Reviewed: 13th March, 2009
Venue: Royal Exchange (Studio)

The Royal Exchange Studio is a perfect venue for small intimate theatre. Love in [3] Parts, the latest production from Bradford’s Lost Dog theatre company, is exactly that, as this is confessional theatre rather than spectacle: nuanced, touching, funny and entrancing.

The story follows Paul, a temp with a publishing company, and Claire, his boss, from their first date at an art gallery, through the ups and downs of their affair. The first date is presented in segments across the course of the play with the rest of the story unfolding in episodes in between. Add to this the fact of Paul’s OCD, and all the other foibles which people bring to their relationships, and the result is a sampling of a relationship which feels quite realistic.

Rich W. Burton is engaging as Paul, the awkward obsessive-compulsive, and perfectly compliments Sally Kent’s seemingly more assured and confident Claire. Both actors provide excellent performances as they roam the set which alternates between Paul’s flat, Claire’s flat, and the scene of their first date.

This careful choreography also includes musician James Dey who provides a live soundtrack to the play - and performs various bit-parts. With guitar and electric piano, his songs - both in music and in their lyrics - lend extra texture, enhancing both performance and plot.

Dan Mallaghan should be commended for his direction, making full use of Kath Singh’s compact but well-realised set. With little space and few props, the cast conjure up a full story of a relationship and all its details. The way that tea-mugs dance from hand to hand and place to place, suggesting the ups and downs of the couple’s love, is worth a comment all by itself.

This is an assured piece and the dialogue is tight, realistic and often surprising. The performances carry you easily through the story, all but forcing you to identify with the characters and their situations. The addition of the live music at times turns what is a small production into something more akin to film. The play is, in places, light and funny, but there is a darker edge which grounds it and makes it much more real and engaging than it might otherwise have been.

An excellent piece of theatre, well worth the price of admission.

-Calum Kerr

This entry was posted on Friday, March 13th, 2009 at 8:38 am and is filed under Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.