Remembrance Monday by Michael Batten. Seven Dials Playhouse, 1A Tower Street, London WC2H to 01 June 2024. 4✩✩✩✩ Review: William Russell.

Photo Credit: Danny Kaan.

Remembrance Monday by Michael Batten. Seven Dials Playhouse, 1A Tower Street, London WC2H to 01 June 2024.

4✩✩✩✩ Review: William Russell.

“…a moving and ultimately tragic tale well worth adding to your list of plays to see.”

Julius and Connor live together. Julius was a dancer, Connor is an artist and they met on Grindr. Julius is in the bath, Connor is doing his hair prior to going out to spend the evening with an old friend whose birthday it is. Julius is none too pleased but so be it. The scene repeats itself and repeats itself in Michael Batten’s play until we discover why. Along the way we get their first meeting , the fact that Connor proposes to Julius and marries him, and that sexually he likes to play away still because much as he loves Julius they have limitations on what they do sexually. Director Alan Souza keeps the series of scenes flowing smoothly and has elicited fine performances from Nick Hayes as the edgy, insecure Julius and Matthew Stathers as the more sophisticated and worldly Connor. The lighting and a cleverly conceived set – the audience sit all round the acting area - also add to the merits of the evening although one does feel that maybe Julius might take his underpants off to bathe, which he never does.Quite why it is set in a bathroom, although the bath appears to be Julius’s comfort zone, is one of those things – it could as easily have been in their bedroom. Male nudity is two a penny on stage these days so the modesty is slightly surprising and the fact that both are svelte gym toned chaps does start to jar when Julius complains as scene follows scene that he is getting old and losing his shapeliness. But Batten has surprises in store. We learn why this is a memorial Monday, the reason for the scenes repeating themselves - Julius is remembering a fateful day in their relationship. Then Batten launches a heart rendingsurprise. Remembrance Monday is not a play to send you into the night feeling elated but it certainly leaves on pondering how cruel the fates can be. Given the plethora of plays about gay men minus their clothes this one is well above average, a moving and ultimately tragic tale well worth adding to your list of plays to see.

Cast

Nick Hayes – Julius.

Matthew Stathers – Connor.

Creatives

Director – Alan Souza.

Set Designer – Andrew Exeter.

Lighting Designer – Jack Weir.

Sound Designer – Sarah Weltman. 

Movement Director – Diante Lodge.