17 February – 4 March

ABBA produced many an earworm. They weren’t always held in the high esteem they are now, but it’s hard to hate them – they are likeable, through and through. You’d be similarly hard pressed to dislike The Way Old Friends Do.

Directed by Mark Gatiss, this heartfelt new play opens in a small local theatre where we meet Jodie (Rose Shalloo, playing ditziness deftly) as she rambles to stage manager Sally (Donna Berlin) about her nerves, about auditioning to join an ABBA tribute band. The listing says they’re looking for two women to play Benny and Björn, Jodie hasn’t pointed out the typo though she knows what directors are like. Then we’re flashing back to Peter (a charming Ian Hallard) preparing for his Grindr hook-up to arrive. But old school friend Edward (James Bradshaw) rocks up, they bicker and reminisce about their shared love of ABBA, and agree to meet for lunch again the next day.

At lunch is where the threads start to tie together. We see Peter and Sally are good friends, and Sally bemoans how an ABBA tribute band has dropped out of performing at the library theatre where she works. So Edward makes a wild suggestion. Why doesn’t Peter wash away his shame about an embarrassing schoolboy ABBA performance with a round two? But this time, in drag, and with his rediscovered best bud by his side.

Jodie was wrong about the typo. She and Mrs Campbell (played by understudy Tariyé Peterside for press night, and by god did she steal the show) are cast as Benny and Bjorn, and Peter and Edward step into Agnetha’s and Anni-Frid’s platform boots.

The first half of The Way Old Friends Do builds a little world for us to peer into, centred around Peter the ABBA mega-fan. We discover his close relationship with his Nan (Miriam Margoyles) and the secrets he hides from her through a series of phone calls, and why ABBA means so much to him. It’s all building towards the group’s first performance as the ABBA tribute band…

The play is very much a tale of two halves, as the farce is dialled down and the drama ramps up post interval. Pacing isn’t great throughout but as things get messy between Peter and Edward when young, handsome ABBA lover Christian (Andrew Horton) arrives on the scene, the production, too, gets a little messier. And it feels the women of the piece are shunted to the side, which is such a shame.

I’d recommend the show if you are an ABBA mega-fan yourself, if you love a Brummy or West Midlands reference, or if you want to have a few vinos and a giggle. It’s very funny in places (although a couple of jokes feel tone-deaf), Janet Bird’s design is understated but pitch perfect, and the cast is small but strong and evenly talented. It’s a bit of fun, go see it!

★★★★☆   Will Amott   23 February 2023