2 – 3 March
Sam and Nick are two nice young men who meet up in Nick’s flat, apparently for the first time, although they have met online. They are both very polite to each other. Sam has brought round a bottle of red wine and Nick apologises firstly for not hearing him knock at the door. They appear to be settling down for a dinner date. And in a way they are, but it is not the conventional kind of repast that they have in mind.
Nick is certainly intending to cook a meal, but one that is a bit more adventurous than the carbonara that he has already prepared.
With more than a few nods towards the real-life criminal case of Armin Meiwes the German computer repair technician who killed and ate a voluntary victim who he had met on the internet, this production by Clay Party and Conflicted Theatre has more than enough to whet your appetite. If you can stomach it, that is.
With its darkly comic humour, and charming characterisations by Eddie Loodmer-Elliott as Nick and Pedro Leandro as Sam, this ‘True Crime Rom-Com’ is certainly a cut above the rest. The piping hot script, co-written by the two performers in conjunction with gifted director Evan Lordan is the perfect accompaniment to any evening. Laughs, drama, and the skilful way that the macabre meets the madcap confirms that you can have your cake and eat it.
The company have had to make do with performing in using any space they could during the pandemic including disused warehouses, offices, elevators, and private offices, but show that they can cook up a storm when housed in the intimate space afforded by the Wardrobe theatre.
With a sparse set comprising of a dining table (of course), two chairs, a cabinet with a toolbox stored to one side, this seventy minute one act play delights all the senses, such is the quality of the oven ready writing and keen as mustard performances. We learn the characters’ plans bit by bit through a series of questions they each must answer. Nick appears as charming as can be, almost as though butter wouldn’t melt in his mouth. Sam is as cool as a cucumber, even though we don’t quite find out his reasons for entering this arrangement. He certainly seems eccentric, but not exactly a sandwich short of a picnic.
The pair settle down while they get to know and like each other, even if only for the weekend, and begin to examine the background behind this entirely consensual relationship. Nick is keen to discover if it is true that you are what you eat, while Sam seems keen to seek retribution from his mother, perhaps demonstrating that revenge is a meal best eaten cold.
The final scene ends on a knife edge. Literally. This show is definitely one for those who like their comedy served up with a heavy portion of irony. A wonderful amuse bouche that is certainly finger lickin’ good.
★★★★☆ Bryan J Mason 3rd March
