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Theatre listings > Acts Of Love - Lost And Found/Sun Worshipper/The Love Shop. - World Premieres. Playwright - Jon Davey/John Kelly/Lorraine McCann. Director - Ali Rutherford/ Lisa Borland/ Lorraine Mcann. Costume Mistress - Jacqui McIntosh. Sound & Light - Steve Robb & Jamie Fallen. Company - Big Village Company. Cast - here . Venue - Bedlam Theatre. Dates -16– 19 November 2005 at 7.30pm. Run Time - 2 hours 30 mins including one Interval. Reviewer - Alex Eades. Early Nerves Blossom Into Sparkling Love Affair. "Sounds a bit mushy!", whimpers my girlfriend as we, in fear of frostbite, dance our way down to the Bedlam Theatre. "Yeah!", was the only reply I could muster. I have to say, I was a little worried as to how this evening was going to pan out. Was this going to be an evening of "Thankyou Alex! That's the most romantic evening of my entire life, Alex!", or "Alex, did you just go for the title?". Quickly followed by "Are you confident about your sexuality, Alex?.......I'll call you!". It turned out, thankfully, to be neither. Acts Of Love is divided into three performances. First up is Lost And Found which, really, should never had made it onto the stage. Poorly written and directed, the actors are completely lost and have no idea what to do with themselves, which is ironic since the entire play is set in a maze. I'd love to say that that was the point...but it just isn't. Oh no! What a waste of a night! I'm dead...... .........but wait! Sun Worshipper soon comes into play and, after a couple of minutes, I come to the realization that my life has been spared thanks to a pitch perfect performance by Steve Rouxel. Sun bathing has never seemed so naughty! Completely over the top, this is situation comedy at its best. Perfection! The chemistry between Rouxel and Helen Burns as "the adventurous" sunbathers is nothing short of ...well...naughty. Writer, John Kelly, clearly has a knack for comedy. I can't wait for new work. The final piece is "The Love Shop" and they've saved the best for last. Written and directed by Lorraine Mcann this sweet and funny tale surrounding the unlucky in love and a magic teapot is the perfect way to finish the evening. Actors Allison Armstrong and Wendy Brindle, both of whom gave shaky performances earlier in the evening in the unremarkable Lost And Found, show here that they are both two very fine actresses indeed. The star of the show, however, has to be Ryan O'Neil as the super camp Murdo. Bearing a remarkable likeness to Billy Connelly in his deliverance (not in appearance), Ryan holds the audience attention without having to say a word. A true gift and a fine comic actor. By the end of the evening, you'll find that there will be a cozy warm glow in your chest. It's not the flu kicking in. It's not those two glasses of red wine that you knocked back during the interval. It's that first kiss feeling. And if a show can make a manly man like myself get as gooey as a schoolgirl and ponder inserting diary entries, then I'm sure you'll feel it too. ©Alex Eades 16 November 2005 - Published on EdinburghGuide.com Cast (in order of appearance) - Allison Armstrong - Mary/Mrs Tavish, Wendy Brindle - Susan/ Claire, Brian Miller - John/Brian, Chris Pearson - Sir Percival Prendergast, Lisa Borland - Miss Gardener; Helen Burns - Miss Fanny Prendergast, Steve Rouxel - Lt Bernard Bartholemew, S.J. McGeachy - Susan, Ryan O’neil - Murdo, Derek Mellon - Jack and David Finlay - Plumber. Theatre Editor, Thelma Good's e-mail is thelma@edinburghguide.com Although every effort has been taken to ensure the accuracy of the information presented in these pages, no responsibility can be accepted for any errors or omissions. Theatre listings >
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