one4review | On 08, Aug 2023

A play about relationships in a small Yorkshire town, with the characters choosing to meet under a statue of a woman called The Stranger, who stares out forlornly at the pub opposite, her exact story unknown. Is she looking beyond the town, at the sea for her lost love? Everybody in the town agrees that The Stranger is beautiful, at least they do according to TripAdvisor.

Under the statue, we meet three gay couples – recently divorced Charlie and Jamie, temperamental Gem and Rory and Jordon and Bailey, who are all at various stages in their young life, from student to working. None of the relationships seem to have a future, although Jamie, as a social worker, feels that she has the answers and should intervene, tying to offer advice to the other two couples. However, she obviously didn’t succeed in her own relationship with Charlie, which began at university and hasn’t survived into their working lives. Both are also currently skint, but then they are English Literature graduates!

There was some good dialogue and a bit of humour in the play, although the storyline did occasionally fail to hit home, particularly while dealing with the more difficult content. The short duration of the play, at just under 45 minutes, didn’t really allow for the individual stories to develop fully, and the whole thing did rather fizzle out … not unlike the relationships it was portraying. However, the acting from this young cast is enthusiastic and engaging, and they should be supported, especially as they have brought a new piece of theatre to the Fringe.

3***

Reviewed by Howard

The Space @Surgeons Hall, Theatre 3

16.00 (45 mins)

Until 12th August