This is a rehearsed reading of a play still in development. Before it begins director Norman Murray announces that he intends to rework it from one act to two. Nevertheless, the play is presented to a paying audience, and criticism is invited.

The Mass Suicide Club of the play's title appears at first sight to be a support group for the depressed and hopeless. But rather than sharing counselling and advice, its members have a darker purpose. Jim (Mark Wright) is in charge. When newcomer Gabriel (Gavin Dobson) arrives, Jim recounts his own history of depression and emptiness. Having found his medication ineffective, Jim has formed this club as a protest to the world at large. Its six members, including the worryingly absent Pete, have been meeting weekly for the past year, posing as a book group. So, when the caretaker passes, they launch into an erudite analysis of gender politics in the Harry Potter series, but their real intent is to end their own lives together in public.

Jim's name echoes that of Jim Jones (1931-1978), of the notorious Jonestown mass suicide (1978) in Guyana, but it's a very faint echo. As he acknowledges, the crew he's gathered barely counts as a mass. 'A mass suicide should involve six or seven people. Maybe eight', he opines gloomily. His inability to match Jones's scale is perhaps explained by his singular lack of charisma. His only passion is for pedantic definition of the status of super-heroes, a theme he returns to repeatedly.

Gabriel's arrival brings some clunky exposition. 'Explain me this...' he asks, followed duly by details about Becca (Ally Lynn), whose vaguely hippy-ish history has left her empty and unfulfilled - to the point where death seems a release. Nat (Charlotte-Elizabeth Talbot) is only 15 - exceedingly young to be accepted by the others as part of this project - but tells of her abusive family and her habit of self-harm. Sarah (Louise Burnell) is a rich girl who had everything, but was brought low by post-natal depression and family tragedy. Andrea (Louise Lee) is schizophrenic, and the medicine which silenced her internal voices turns out to have had intolerable side-effects.

These are all, apparently, based on true stories, but there is an identikit quality to their presentation. The schematic structure gives little chance of interaction between the characters, and the twist is not surprising enough to satisfy. The central conceit of the play is intriguing, but much detail is implausible or unexplained.

Director Norman Murray gets spirited, committed performances from a skilled cast – an impressive achievement in only apparently ten hours of rehearsal. Unfortunately they have little to play with, particularly in the case of Gavin Dobson, whose portrayal of Gabriel cannot escape the character's function as a plot device. Mark Wright as Jim seems unsure whether to play his character for laughs or for emotional depth, but again this reflects a weakness of the writing. Others concentrate on the emotional impact of their characters' stories, to good effect.

The play needs much work before it can go into full-scale production, and it is surprising that writer Andy Pandini and director Norman Murray had enough confidence in this draft to present it to the public – even as a reading.

Cast Credits: (alpha order): Laura Burnell - Sarah. Gavin Dobson - Gabriel. Louise Lee - Andrea. Ally Lynn - Becca. Charlotte-Elizabeth Talbot - Nat. Mark Wright - Jim.

Company Credits: Writer - Andy Pandini. Director - Norman Murray. Lighting Designer - uncredited. Sound Designer - uncredited. Technical Operator - uncredited. Producer - uncredited. Company - uncredited. Rose Theatre Operations Manager - Pepe Pryke.

END

(c) Ian Saville 2009

reviewed Friday, 17th July 2009 / The Rose Theatre, London UK

Fringe Report (c) Fringe Report 2002-2012

www.fringereport.com