Review by: Paul Towers, 1/3/19
Feel by James Lewis
Produced by Mitchell Reeve, directed by David Brady and performed
by Anthony Fagan, Gabrielle Nellis-Pain, Emily Costello, Colin Hubbard
Upstairs @ The Western, 1st & 2nd
March 2019
“emotional, funny and very believable”
A double bed dominates the stage. It is made, ready for
action. Two couples’ lives intersect, burn brightly for a while and then fade.
Nick and Karen have been on the same train platform for
months but, in the typically British way, have never spoken. Until the day they
both end up on the same bench. Karen, irritating and bored with life, bugs Nick
til he relents and actually has a conversation with her.
Naomi and Jamie meet in a bar and, drunkenly, stumble back
to his flat. In the preparation for the inevitable tumble under the duvet Jamie finds the emotion overwhelming so they sit up all night talking. In fact they spend
weeks talking. Just nothing more.
Each of the four, in their own ways, are damaged. Nick has
major health issues which he tries to ignore; Karen is stuck in a boring job
because she is too scared to chase her dreams; Naomi has shut down emotionally
after the death of her father and Jamie is just neurotic. Each of them tries to
mend their relationships when really they should be mending themselves first.
This is a beautifully scripted drama of two parallel couples
trying to sort their lives out. Creative staging means that the action alternates
between the couples like a split screen. The scene changes are beautifully choreographed
so that props and furniture can be moved and placed in near darkness.
The acting is superb, emotional, funny and very believable.
Feel is on at Upstairs at The Western again tomorrow,
Saturday but with very few tickets left.
More information about the ongoing tour can be found at http://www.proforca.co.uk
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