Vincent River is a one act play by Philip Ridley. It tells of 2 strangers, Anita and Davey who meet in Anita’s new home for the first time. Davey reveals to Anita that it was him who found her son’s dead body, a victim of a hate crime. As these two strangers get to know each other the layers of the story get peeled back showing that there is far more too it than meets the eye.

The show is well paced, information eeked out, sometimes just a tiny nugget of information, other times in great waves which keeps the intrigue going throughout the show.

Thomas Mahey is believable as a sullen teen who slowly opens up throughout the show. His final monologue demonstrates what he is capable of as he had the audience riveted. Louise Jameson as Anita comes across as incredibly vulnerable despite a tough facade she is trying to maintain and convinces as a mother racked with grief.

Whilst Jameson and Mahey did a good job with the script and I was intrigued throughout the show I felt very little for either Anita or Davey. Their mood swings were difficult to follow, least alone empathise with and they went from screaming at each other, to kissing and from being wary of each other to foot massage. In a show such as this I wanted to feel more for both Anita and Davey.

The set was sparse but was all that was needed, a covered sofa in the centre and unpacked boxes. The lighting was simple, reminiscent of a dim and slightly dinghy room, working together to help create an uneasy and slightly unstable atmosphere.

Overall Vincent River is an intriguing and intelligent play but I just wanted to be able to invest into the characters a more and to personally feel more emotion throughout the piece.

Vincent River is on until the 22nd June at Trafalgar Studios To find out more about the show and to book tickets visit their website.

If you like this review you might also like my review of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Amour and Hell Yes I’m Tough Enough.