Are You Lonesome Tonight? and Heart Shaped Box are two short plays written by Andy Moseley.

***

Are You Lonesome Tonight? deals with a married American couple celebrating their 25th wedding anniversary. Set in a motel room, Dwight Carter is surprising his wife Leanne with a trip following American singer Elvis Presley's tour across the United States. It is a very well written piece; the dialogue is filled with wit and pathos. Highlights include lines such as 'The real deal! It's a wedding anniversary not a car sale!'

Nigel Cole's Dwight is likeable and instantly engaging, but his accent is at times shaky. Lizzie Brignall's Leanne has a very poor American accent which gets in the way of the performance. It is hard to believe in her character, particularly when she breaks down. Both actors are much better when they slow the pace of their acting and start to have fun with the piece. One scene in particular, in which the characters argue, is almost unintelligible and moves too quickly to follow.

***

Between the two plays is a lengthy scene-change which is unnecessarily slow. As both plays are set in bedrooms it is questionable why so much set changing has to take place.

***

Heart Shaped Box is perfectly pitched in performance, direction and script. After a very funny start, writer Andy Moseley manages to shift between comedy and tragedy seamlessly. It explores the interesting premise of two characters exploring blame and responsibility seven years after the death of a friend. The script is particularly successful in taking twists which could feel clichéd and making them feel fresh. As the characters' back story is revealed through these twists they become more three-dimensional and true to life. But the ending is unnecessary and the play would be better left open-ended.

The two actors clearly enjoy the material and bounce off each other well. Howie Ripley excels as Lawrence the reformed alcoholic and brings some much needed comedy to a very dark piece. He succeeds in showing multiple sides to his character, which is impressive considering the brief length of the play. Alison Green is also good as Diana the ex-girlfriend but isn't quite convincing enough when the character becomes upset. Both actors come into their own at the climax of the play which is gripping and moving.

***

In both plays the minimal costume and set are used creatively and in Are You Lonesome Tonight? the costume looks appropriately 1970s. Overall Heart Shaped Box is much more enjoyable than Are You Lonesome Tonight? - but with some work on the acting, and in particular the accents, it has a lot of potential.

***

Cast Credits: (alpha order): Lizzie Brignall - Leanne Carter. Nigel Cole - Dwight Carter. Alison Green - Diana Carpenter. Howie Ripley - Lawrence Wright.

Company Credits: Writer (both plays) - Andy Moseley. Director (Are You Lonesome Tonight?) - Chris Burton. Director (Heart Shaped Box) - Andy Moseley. Lighting Designer - uncredited. Sound Designer - uncredited. Technician - Mike Ward. Original Stage Manager - Carrie Henderson. Producer - uncredited. Company - NoLogo Productions. Website - www.nologopublications.co.uk.

END

(c) Matthew Rose 2010

reviewed Wednesday 07 April 2010 / Old Fire Station, Oxford, UK

Fringe Report (c) Fringe Report 2002-2010

www.fringereport.com