Parlour Song

Synopsis

Ned and Joy are a married couple. He is a demolition expert, she is a housewife. They live in a house that adjoins neighbour Dale and seventy eight other houses just like theirs. Occasionally they enjoy a game of scrabble. But Ned has a recurring dream and a recurring problem; things keep disappearing. Parlour Song is a comedy that explores what happens when two ordinary people discover they hate who they have become, in a world where all is not what is seems.

Our Review:

27 March 2009

Jez Butterworth’s new play (only his fourth) at the Almeida is a spooky tale of mid-life crisis and adultery in the suburbs, where the trees whisper strange messages, nightmares are rife and people think their neighbours are ghouls at the garden barbecues.

Ned, the demolition expert, is convinced that his possessions are being stolen by unseen intruders; he’s losing everything from gold cufflinks to lawnmowers. He’s also having trouble keeping his wife, Joy, happy in the bedroom, while neighbour Dale, the car-wash impresario, is standing by to help out and provide a good service.

Ian Rickson’s superb production starts with Toby Jones’ tedious and overweight little Ned boring Andrew Lincoln’s street-wise Dale for the umpteenth time with his film of a demolition job in Leeds, or is it in Kilmarnock? Anyway, next up will be the local shopping centre, and Dale and Amanda Drew’s lustrous, sensual Joy eventually put a lid on their summer affair when Ned gets round ...

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Latest User Review

Gareth James - 28 April 2009:

It's not sub-anyone else, it's Jez Butterworth! Like his other plays, I found it sparklingly original but he doesn't lay it all out for you - you have to put in some work too and decide what YOU think. I found myself moving from laughter to anger to contempt to sadness, but I was always captivated. The only problem with Jez Butterworth is that he doesn't write enough plays - this is the 4th in 15 years. Still, like the proverbial bus, we have another before the summer's over....

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