Brian Coyle’s smartly paced and gripping domestic drama has plenty to recommend it.
The intimacy of the White Bear Theatre’s space works beautifully for Brian Coyle’s intimate and gripping play that examines grief, guilt and parental responsibility in the wake of a tragic event.
While initially the abstract way in which the conversations between Kate and Thomas unfold is a little bit disorientating as the story unfolds with the help of the opening of the box placed at the centre of the room that leads to painful secrets to being revealed it becomes a gripping watch as both characters deal with their grief and their role in the tragedy. The box feels like a Pandora’s box – never knowing what is going to be released emotionally.
Running at just an hour long, the script is tight and concise with not a word wasted with the tightly strung performances of Martin Edwards and Sarah Lawrie as parents struggling to deal with their grief and guilt in different ways. Meanwhile the box itself represents the pain of keeping things hidden away and how unlocking it can lead to trouble and resentment. There is a lot of pain and anger to be uncovered here and I was left feeling that it could have been expanded slightly to explore its deeper themes more.
Directed with great fluidity by Jonathan Woolf, the whole production feels as though it is a bit of dance as to who has the bigger secrets and played the bigger part in the tragedy. Aspects such as Simon Beyer’s soft piano accompaniment sound design and soft almost romantic lighting design suggests the story was going to be sensitively dealt with (which it was) and that the audience were being invited into this intimate environment – but there were flashes where it felt slightly too romantic given the context of the story.
It is interesting to see how many different issues are covered in this short play that offers a sense that it could be expanded slightly more. Issues include parental responsibility, what it means to be a man in the 21st century (and how we effectively and compassionately pass this on to our sons), grief and confronting our role when tragedy happens. It is a lot to take onboard in an hour – no matter how impressively paced it is.
Both of the performances from Martin Edwards as Tom and Sarah Lawrie offer an emotional rawness that is as difficult to watch as it is to take your eyes away from. Perhaps Edwards as Tom is a little more restrained but this could be seen as making a statement on men feeling as though they have to hide their emotions, while Lawrie as Kate is a little bit wilder and angrier in a way that is painful to watch – there are lovely moments between them with both performances being well grounded.
Overall, The Box is a compelling production to watch unfold and has plenty to recommend it – but it does take quite a few minutes to settle down and find its rhythm.
By Emma Clarendon
The Box continues to play at the White Bear Theatre until the 3rd August.
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐