Review: "Connected" and "The other day" at The White Bear Theatre

Till 5th October, 2008 at The White Bear

A man and a woman drink, eat cheese and reminisce in a shabby 1970's style living room of a small house somewhere outside London. Another man and another woman also drink, eat cheese and reminisce in the same room, without ever interacting with the first pair. As they argue and booze their way through the evening, the characters reveal ever more of themselves and their history; old emotional and psychological scars are left bleeding afresh and it is unclear whether the night has been cathartic or simply a re-living of past traumas.

Developed separately before being brought together as a single piece by Abandon Theatre, "Connected" and "The Other Day" are played out simultaneously, in the same space. The couple from "Connected" pause to give the couple from "The Other Day" stage time, and vice versa, each pair becoming neutral during the other's duologue. In between hinting that the two pieces might be related to one another and accepting that ultimately, there does not have to be any kind of connection between them (at least not in terms of narrative), the production provokes a disturbing sense of bewilderment and loss. Whilst the experiment of playing both scenes simultaneously does not throw any light on either piece per se, the unsettling effect of combining them in such a manner provides a relevant context for the bleak subject-matter.

Maheen Mohamedally's direction is deft enough for the two storylines to never step on one another's toes and the acting is mostly confident with Deon Newbronner, in particular, giving a magnetic and moving performance in "Connected". As for Amy Rushton's set, it is as the stories unfold that it becomes apparent how appropriate it really is; a space that initially appears to be merely tattered and threadbare becomes suggestive of the sordid events which took place there as the past is unravelled by the four protagonists.

Even though "The Other Day" is weaker in terms of perfomances than "Connected", meaning that the two don't sit as happily together as they might, and the entire production is, at times, a little meandering, the fascination which arises from the unusual format is enough to keep the audience engaged. Add to this the sensitive and compelling treatment of difficult subject-matter and you have a production as captivating as it is devastating.