Couple’s tale to make you laugh and cry
If you’re looking for an evening that will remind you of the first delicate moments in a relationship, then head down to the Theatre Royal in Bath.
This week the theatre has got Beginning, a National Theatre production in association with Queen’s Theatre, Hornchurch, starring Amanda Ryan and Simon Darwen.
The play has already got heaps of five star reviews so we went along to see what the fuss was all about.
The show opens in the early hours of the morning and Danny is the last straggler at Laura’s housewarming party. The flat’s in a mess. And so are they.
What follows is two ordinary people who realise they have a connection and try yo build upon it with all the awkward and prying conversations that come with it.
Laura, expertly played by Ryan, is 38, single, childless and with no immediate family; Danny, brilliantly played by Darwen, is 42, divorced, living with his mother and has not seen his daughter for a number of years.
Slowly but surely they begin to open up to one another. They dance to Bros, consume fish finger
sandwiches and share just where they are in London and their lives.
The show is heartwarming, the characters are so real you wouldn’t be surprised to see their names in your contact book.
It has everything you’d need from a rom-com, moments of sadness and realness that makes you well up, to laugh out loud funny moments and heartfelt sentiments.
Ryan is glorious as Laura, a woman who has her fair share of baggage and Darwen is great as Danny, who has lost his love of life.
I won’t give the ending away but it was surprisingly poignant as it showed how difficult it is to make a true connection.
This critically acclaimed smash hit received its world premiere at the National Theatre in 2017 before transferring to the West End.
Revivied by Queen’s Theatre Hornchurch this autumn, it marks the first visit by the National Theatre to the Theatre Royal Bath since 2019, as part of a major national tour.
To buy tickets, go to www. theatreroyal.org.uk/event/ beginning. The show runs until Saturday, October 2.
By Emma Elgee
Theatre Round-up - p22&23