For One Night Only

A warning, reader: I have a predilection for eavesdropping. As you sip your pint in the K.A.; as you sip your cocktail at the Grand; as you nibble your ludicrously overpriced salad in Quod, the chances are that I am (or that another of my ilk is) listening. Granted, most of what we hear is trivial, the froth and foam of existence, but sometimes, just sometimes, one of the grand scenes of life drifts through the thrumming air to our ears. For One Night Only appeals for the simple reason that it perfectly mimics the experience of prying.Each episode is improvised around a single occurrence in a single character’s life, and the resulting spontaneity adds real interest to what would otherwise be a fairly un-dramatic plot. On the night of the review, for example, Lucy Kellet, played by Rebecca Baron, fails her A-Level English exam. After a short initial period, where the cast acted just as people in plays do, rather than as people in life, they relaxed into their roles and totally captured the audience’s attention. All the performers seemed both to have absorbed the essence of their characters and poured themselves into their personae, so that they were less acting than living the drama. A special mention must go to Jamie Budd, played by John Gethin, who appeared simply to have strolled into the B.T. and played himself- there was never a moment where he was anything less or more than his character. Production was for the most part good, although scene changes were noisily reminiscent of a school play. All in all, however, this was as enjoyable a foray into contemporary theatre as could be desired.By Andrew Pearson