There or Here is a sensitive comedy which touches the heart of the audience. It was an exceptional performance.
At the start of February, I was lucky enough to be presented with the opportunity to see a comedy called ‘There or Here’, at the Park Theatre. The production tells the story of a couple in a battle with illness, who head to India to outsource their pregnancy in order to fulfil their longing for a child of their own.
When I arrived at the theatre for the show, the staff members were very polite and considerate. The theatre was clean and felt comfortable. The bar area was full of excited guests, waiting in anticipation for the production to start, where the actual stage space was quite small and sat a small audience, which worked well for the type of performance we were going to see. It meant that set changes were done smoothly and quickly on-stage, enhancing the production’s non-chronological order.
There or Here is an incredibly engaging, thought-provoking piece which both entertains and touches on sensitive subject matters. The remarkable cast of just five actors do an amazing job of capturing the audience and some perform multiple roles with outstanding characterisation and communication, not to mention their being able to make the audience erupt into laughter at any given time. With a swift change in lighting and a sign telling us the circumstance of each scene, we travelled through time to see how the protagonists, Robyn and Ajay, got to be in the heart-wrenching position they are in at the end of the production.
The performance overall was a powerful, emotional, unforgettable piece for which I am very grateful I got the chance to see.
Yasmin Ammour - Norbury Manor BEC
