With friends like these, Ayckbourn weaves story

HErNE Bay Little Theatre has chosen Absent Friends by Alan Ayckbourn as its next production, directed by Christine ramsay. Colin must be comforted in his grief over the death of his fiancée so his friends John and miserable Evelyn have been invited to tea with unhappily married Paul and Diana. They are joined by Marge, whose husband is at home in bed feeling poorly The intention is to cheer up their friend Colin, whose fiancée Carol recently drowned. However, not all of them enter into the project with enthusiasm. When Colin arrives, they try to tread carefully around the subject. In any case, he’s not the one who needs comforting. As Colin revisits the past, it’s the others who turn out to be saturated with jealousy and resentment, and his grating optimism prompts them to reveal their darkness. Colin turns out not to be grieving in the manner expected, and his friends’ awkwardness increases and soon turns to resentment. What starts as an exercise in consolation turns into a truly excruciating occasion, played out in the confines of a 1970s suburban sitting room. The play stars Mark Phillips as Colin, Dee Sullivan as Di, Nathan Toulane as Paul, Alison Cook as Marge, Calum Syers as John and Marie Diamond as the surly Evelyn. The play opens on Monday and runs until Saturday, February 16, at 7.30pm.

Tickets are £8 from the box office on 01227 366004 or visit www.hernebaylittletheatre. com

A scene from Herne Bay Little Theatre’s production of Absent Friends