This chilling psychological thriller written by James Dearden is based on the Paramount Pictures motion picture of the same name.
Currently playing at the Opera House Manchester, Kym Marsh and Oliver Farnworth (both of Coronation Street alumni) star in the dark portrayal of obsessive love.
Superbly directed by Loveday Ingram, both Marsh and Farnworth deliver you a play which seduces you into a story of hot lust, deathly obsession and the sad pain caused by mental illness.
Kym Marsh has carved herself a notable stage and television career since coming to our attention as part of the reality TV music band Hear Say. After 13 years in Coronation St, a few awards and then some high profile TV presenting, Marcs certainly proves her worth as an actor in this production. Playing Alex Forrest, Marsh is believable in her characterisation of a very sexy seductress who is also desperate to be loved and sadly seems to be suffering from a psychological disorder called Erotomania. (The delusion of being loved by an unattainable person). A credible performance by Marsh throughout.
Although Marsh is billed as the star of this show, playing the role of Dan Gallagher is Oliver Farnworth who also has a very credible stage and television CV, again more known for starring in Coronation Street.
Farnworth brings a very commanding and yet at times, a vulnerable character who makes one decision that changes his and his family’s life forever. A chance meeting in a bar brings Alex Forrest and Dan Gallagher together where they laugh, they drink, they eat and then they enter into a weekend of consensual passion.
As Dan Gallagher, Farnworth certainly earns his stripes in the role. The character barely leaves the stage for 2 hours and the amount of dialogue he has to remember and deliver is incredible. Farnworth takes you on this emotional journey of seeing a man having to deal with the fall consequences of his actions.
Together, both Marsh and Farnsworth have a great chemistry in their delivery of these complex characters.
Other cast members to mention are Susie Amy (of Footballers Wives fame) who confidently plays Beth Gallagher, the unfortunate wife of Dan Gallagher, and also John Macaulay who plays Dan Gallagher’s friend, drinking buddy & work colleague who is there to encourage this misgivings and then try to help him pick up the pieces when everything in his life is shattered.
The set and staging were simple and the lighting and projections tried to modernise the visual by using vibrant colours and technology which projected “facetime calls” as the characters communicated with other. If I am honest – these were somewhat lost and not hugely visible if you weren’t sat in the centre of the theatre.
Overall, it is a fantastic production which the audience on opening night demonstrated they agreed by the rapturous response at the end.
If you have seen the film, Ingram does not disappoint with her direction of this play as she is dishing up the famous scenes of sordid passion, intense emotions and of course the ill-fated children’s pet that also has a steamy scene of its own! (no spoilers for those that haven’t seen the film!)
Although the film version of this story portrays the main cause of this tragic drama all being down to the obsessiveness of the female lead, Ingram has very cleverly layered this stage version to show that Dan Gallagher is not blameless to the true pain this lady feels. In a time when mental health concerns have never been more highlighted in our lives, how we treat each other is not without its consequences.
Currently playing at Manchester Opera House until Saturday 26th February 2022, the show then embarks on a UK tour – information on tickets can be found at www.atgtickets.com
Review by Glen Clancy
The Biz 