Haven – Smock Alley Theatre – Review by Sean Coyle

Part of the Scene + Heard Festival

Run finished – Feb 26th and 27th

No Drama Theatre present ‘Haven’, as part of Smock Alley Theatre’s Scene + Heard festival and the result was an excellent mix of humor, irony, cynicism and well written avant-garde conceptual thought. The lead character of this piece (played by Peter Blennerhassett) is “confined to a new sanctuary, whilst trepidation reigns. There is only one way out:” obey the commands and play the game”.

Blennerhassett played the role to great effect and his frustration was convincingly conveyed as he tried to escape from his “new sanctuary”; his reactions were met with admiration, laughter and applause as the underlying comic overtones were warmly received by the audience throughout the piece. At roughly 40 minutes long ‘Haven’ flows nicely and keeps the audience engaged throughout with a tense plot line.

The voiceover character is played by Lesley Ann Reilly, and although not seen in the play her stage presence is strongly felt, as was the chemistry and comradery between the two leads. The supporting cast were also impressive, using interoperative movement to cast an underlining shadow to further augment the piece. The production values were perfect; lighting was used to great effect in an effort to set a convincing tone and present this well written and intriguing piece.