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The Review - THEATRE by REBECCA FIELDING
Published: 24 April 2008

Royce Cronin and Susan Bracken

Playing fetch with life’s truth and lies

THE FETCH
Old Red Lion Theatre

ON a dimly lit set, the panic of the young Victor (Royce Cronin) sets in as he entertains the worst-case scenario of his missing wife.
The tension is palpable. Tess (Susan Bracken), his wife’s twin sister, joins him, refusing to share his panic.
What begins as small talk soon becomes a suspiciously loaded question-and-answer session between the two. Bracken plays both twin sisters as the fractious marriage of Victor and Lila is exposed – leaving both the audience and the players increasingly in the dark as to the truth behind the missing wife.
Cronin brings an unsettling anxiety to his character, necessary for the play to hold our attention as a psychological thriller.
He commands the small stage with a carefully controlled performance, taking us through the complex emotions of being both kept in the dark and eventually forced to betray his own secrets.
Bracken delivers a convincing portrayal of a complex woman who struggles to be heard by her laid back husband and seamlessly sets up the few subtle comic moments for Cronin.
Bracken’s incessant costume changes detract from her performance, leaving her unable to allow either of her characters to truly erupt.
Similarly, too much time is spent making minor prop changes of what seem to be little significance. The pair successfully take us between their past and present worlds without needing to rely on two suitcases, a candle and half-eaten Chinese take-away to set the scene.
The Fetch is a clever take on the ability of twins to hide their individual identities within each other and is a certain testament to negotiating the shades of grey in modern relationships.
Both actors fall in and out of a highly physical on-stage relationship with ease and successfully set the pace and tone of Samantha Wright’s truly modern writing.
Until May 3
020 7837 7816

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