Review: The Edit at Theatre503
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© Sabina Mckenzie Brown
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Theatre503 premieres three debut plays this January, kicking off with stage and screen writer Sarah Gordon's The Edit, a lighthearted but often painfully raw dissection of a three-year relationship gone wrong.
It's a dialogue-driven two-hander set in real time two years after Nick (Jamie Wilkes) and Elena's (Serena Manteghi) break-up. Initially, their reunion is awkwardly comic but it's soon apparent, due to the actors' energy and believable sexual chemistry, that theirs is a deep and loving connection. Nick knows her favourite foods and she lovingly accepts his babyishly low pain threshold. Words aren't required: they get each other with a slight look or gesture. The moment when Elena silently passes Nick her sandwich crusts to eat, and he obliges without question, is especially touching.
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© Sabina Mckenzie Brown
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They meet in Nick's London flat, the home he once shared with Elena, and the playful set design by Lydia Denno, with abstract elements, is inspired. Superficially he has moved on: it's now a functional bachelor pad, although striking orange panels pick out vintage furnishings laden with memories of the couples' life together. Equally, Nick has adopted some of Elena's traits. His living room is scarily clean and tidy, his vinyls, books and shoes regimentally organised. Homely touches betray his yearning for a partner's love and affection. Perhaps he's not over her yet?
Manteghi is instantly endearing as Elena, a super-posh structural engineer with OCD who has been damaged by past lovers. Nick, played impeccably by Wilkes, is a gallant witty romantic with a hint of self-indulgence brought on by his drive to be a successful author. As the red wine flows, the ex couple's wistful reminiscing takes a darker turn as they dig full-force into old wounds.
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© Sabina Mckenzie Brown
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For a debut play Gordon's writing is extremely impressive. She deftly weaves shades of light and dark and her acute understanding of romantic relationships always rings true. Nick and Elena feel tantalisingly authentic with their messy history, brutally honest outbursts and moments of quiet teary reflection. As in real life, their arguments are complex, cyclical, contradictory and sometimes cryptic as you lose track of who's right and who's wrong. Nick asks as he clears up broken glass, 'Did I get it all?', his cursory sweeping echoing all the times he glossed over the cracks in their relationship; he most certainly did not get it all.
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© Sabina Mckenzie Brown
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The dialogue on the whole is gripping, though Elena's lengthy monologue about her yoga retreat may have benefited from a little trim. Minuscule physical movements are loaded with meaning, such as Elena's hesitation over whether to place her boots on the IKEA shoerack which signals all you need to know about their current relationship status.
The tension is palpable, almost electric at times, thanks to Joe Hufton's superb direction. Several extended periods with little to no dialogue work magnificently: their nostalgic dance to Bowie's 'Heroes', with Calippo lollies as makeshift mics, was a particular highlight.
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© Sabina Mckenzie Brown
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Cocoa’s verdict: This brilliantly honest relationship play is on for a very short time, so blink and you'll miss it!
⭐⭐⭐⭐
The Edit is on at Theatre503 from 7th–11th January.
Running time: 1hr 20mins (no interval)
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