THEATRE REVIEW : ‘On Demand.’ by Duncan Campbell.

Theatre At The Tabard
2 Bath Road
London
W4 1LW

Another Intriguing Gem from the Talented Tabard Theatre Team.

I knew absolutely nothing about this new play by (now local) writer, Duncan Campbell. And to start with it wasn’t too obvious what was going on. A taxi driver (?) picks up an American woman from a station. No, he’s not a taxi driver, but they’re obviously strangers. He is called Matt (Sam Hill) and she’s called Peaches (Rita Estevanovich). They have arranged to meet, yet it’s obvious they do not know each other and the plot thickens when we find out they are en route to visit a man seemingly celebrating his 80th birthday. A man neither of them appears to have met before! Then Peaches insists they stop to buy him a birthday cake, which adds to the mystery.

We then meet Trevor, the elderly man in question, an artist originally from Birmingham. Played brilliantly by John Gorick, he sits muttering to himself alone in a restaurant debating the menus, then ordering and reordering. He is obviously frail. Matt and Peaches arrive – they seem to get on a bit better now – but with a notable lack of kindness or respect, they whisk Trevor away from his meal with promises of a cliff-top sunset and a gourmet picnic. For some reason!

The rest of the story unfolds on that cliff top. It’s a play best experienced without spoilers, but we slowly discover the true nature of this meeting and the characters’ motivations slowly reveal themselves.

Trevor’s colourful past is brought vividly to life through stage visuals featuring photographs from the Swinging Sixties and a wonderful soundtrack that evokes the era’s energy. As a person of a certain age who used hang out in Soho (and still does!) I loved it when he spoke fondly and candidly about his bohemian years. His friendships with artistic giants like Francis Bacon and Lucian Freud, the paths he followed and why he did some of the things he did. I think many of us can relate to wrong choices made!

It’s a fascinating offering – but it’s not perfect. Some of the dialogue is frankly a bit clunky and their take on the Peaches character means she is not quite as relatable as she could be. There were even occasions when it was difficult to hear the dialogue!

Director Nick Bromley made some great directorial choices though. Trevor’s dramatically lit, almost ‘front of cloth’ 60’s dance sequence was remarkable, and it’s a shame these tropes didn’t go further or occur again. Technically it was great too with a tight sound and light offering.

Niggles apart, again, the Tabard have one again given us a little theatrical gem. A very topical gem, too – but I won’t spoil it for you. It’s a bit of a rough-cut gem perhaps, but it’s a must see, 90-minutes one act world premiere – in their now air-conditioned theatre!

Don’t forget (nearly a spoiler!) to go see it – before it’s too late!

PICTURES: Matt Hunter.