Reps Theatre's 800th production was a double bill that revelled in dark comedy. Wrapped in a sheen of British humour, the plays, translated from French by Anne-Christine Gasc, were witty and laden with great dialogue. The production was directed by Gavin Gordon, who has an adept guiding hand across the two plays.
A Strip Poker Twist
A dinner between two couples who happen to be neighbours unravels into a situation that threatens the livelihood of one of the couples. To recourse this, the couple hosting the dinner conceives the idea of a game of strip poker to gain blackmail material. As the choice of truth or strip is made by each member of the dinner party, secrets and more than a bit of skin are revealed. However, the play's crowning glory is an explosive ending no one sees coming.
While the plot is easy to follow, the humour in the show can be lost in translation in some moments. If a reference is unknown to you, then the laughter around feels exaggerated or just kind to the performance. Yet the moments that don't need cultural context truly hit the funny bone.
The set is simple but allows the audience a clear sight of each actor, and its functional nature makes for a quick interchange between scenes. This however has the drawback of limited expression, due to a lack of moving parts.
Dave, the deceitful mastermind behind the idea of blackmail is played by King Billius, while his wife Victoria is played by Munyaradzi Guramatunhu, who brilliantly plays the role of a supportive wife with a heartbreaking secret, that sees her almost nude before revealing it. Their dinner guests are played by Brendon Lawrence as Dave, a reserved family man married to Pam, played by Krissy Evans who captures the audience's attention with her portrayal of the role.
It's a good production, but you just feel more could've been done with it. Not necessarily in the plot but maybe in the dialogue or how it plays out. However, I would definitely watch it again.
A Bit Of Innocent Murder
Beginning with the hiding of a bloody shirt, the play is the story of a murder that never was. Well, something is killed but not so much someone. A distraught husband confesses the crime to his wife and in the unfurling of events, there is the confession of accidental adultery. This becomes the centrepiece of the play as much as the murder, with a further case of adultery complicating matters. The humour is relatable across the board, almost without the need to know any cultural references.
A Bit Of Innocent Murder has an expansive use of the stage that makes it more engaging. The storytelling is not only in the dialogue but the body language and every actor understands this. The play's set creates different settings in a room and this is topped off by a clever use of props. A dildo gun being the pièce de résistance.
Guglethu Mpofu played Eve and the nervousness she showcases feels like she's in a real-life situation. Alan, who is Eve's husband, is played by Samuel Mundawarara, who is brilliant as the innocent murderer with a striking delivery of lines that hooks you in one moment and has you erupting in laughter the next. Rebecca Compton played Emma, the spouse of the supposed murder victim who turns out to be alive. The dialogue in A Bit Of Innocent Murder is the best thing about it.
The play is carried by its body language and it definitely has scenes of great dialogue. What may be lacking in some moments is outweighed by the nature of the story. You can't wait to find out what comes up the next moment. An engaging watch, well worth the price of admission.
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