The Box by Brian Coyle.The White Bear Theatre, 138 Kennington Park Road, London SE11 to 03 August 2024.

3✩✩✩ Review: William Russell.

“Tense, well performed drama.”

Tom and Kate are sitting looking at a large box which is wrapped in bright red paper/ Should they open it. She wants to, he does not. Clearly their relationship whatever it is – or was – is in trouble and the contents matter. What follows as they fight over what to do is a tense, well directed sixty minutes with terrific performances from Mick Edwards and Sarah Lawrie – their fights are breathtaking and look out for that claw hammer used, once the wrapping is off to demolish the box.

Something did happen, perhaps it is not as much of a surprise as all that – Tom is patently the one who is to blame for whatever it was – but director Jonathan Woolf has kept it all moving briskly and the box spectacularly comes to pieces. Kate changes her clothes frequently – the other prop is clothes rail with some dresses of different colours and what they put on reflects how they are feeling at different times. It all has to do with someone not telling the truth. The mood changes are also helped by the use of sound to back up the battle of wills being played out.

Cast

Martin Edwards – Tom.

Kate -Sarah Lawrie.

Creatives

Director – Jonathan Woolf.

Sound & Lighting Design – Simon Beyer.

Theatre 26 July 2024.

Photo Credit – Alex Walton.