The Ticking is a brand new show written by Adam Paul Brown and produced by Cellar Door Theatre Company. I was pleased to catch this during a two day run at the Drayton Arms theatre. I also want to compliment the poster/programme design (above), which is eye catching.
The play begins with a rather extended period of music with one of the characters asleep on a sofa… the wondering where this was going to lead began at that point… and then as the other members of the cast started to appear, that sense of questioning how they had ended up where they were continued. Unsure as to whether the hungover four “friends” were in one of their own homes to start with, the mystery was gradually explained as the play continued. A flat with no windows became akin to an escape room. The relentless ticking briefcase was a focal point (what was it and where did it come from?) but also a great tool to engage the cast in conversation and flesh out their characters. The issue of whether a live bomb was inexplicably in their midst, and why – and what to do with a gun that is discovered later in the narrative - was in reality not as important to the play as the observations of how four very different but flawed characters relate to each other, and this also symbolised society at large. The play also discussed class wars, blame culture and climate change.
Connor (TJ Dudley) was an interesting character with a backstory which was revealed later in the play. Subtle hints of what to come with the way he held props were cleverly incorporated and the performance here was captivating. Jay (Adam Paul Brown – who also wrote the play) was a wannabe rockstar type, all smouldering good looks and hidden past, another fantastic delivery. Whilst barista Mike (Aaron Barrow) and hedge fund toff Hugo (Jack Cavendish) put 100% enthusiasm into their roles, the direction could have spared quite such a high-energy delivery, especially from Hugo. The character was obnoxious enough without the extreme volume and movement. This is in no way a reflection on the acting ability of either of these performers.
Rea Mole, as Lucy, joins the cast in the latter stages of the play. This brings about a welcome change of pace to the narrative and adds another layer of interest at a good time. Rea Mole's delivery demanded the attention of the characters and audience alike.
Billed as a comedy, for me a lot of the humour fell flat, but a bit of tightening could easily help this. A recurring joke about emetophobia was the best comedic point for me, some of the physical humour perhaps being too large for the space. I also possibly could have done without the deep dive into climate change as an issue, which somehow felt surplus to requirement.
I feel like this play is ripe for further development, perhaps even into a longer piece with an interval, with Lucy appearing in the second half. I want to know more about Connor’s backstory, and have longer with mysterious “escape room” situation before the pace change. I would like to feel the characters fear more, as they try and work out what is going on under the shadow of threat. I could potentially see the whole play as a mystery with comedic elements, rather than a comedy. I feel Jay could do with a bit longer as an enigmatic rock god before he gets unmasked by Hugo. (Oh Hugo, you are such a piece of work. Calm down and you may be slightly more tolerable!). I’d also like to hear Jay and Lucy talk for longer towards the end. Mike was the one I felt I knew the least about at close of the play, so perhaps more of his backstory could also be brought in.
These views are my own personal thoughts and by no means do I think that everyone would agree, in fact some audience members were laughing at a lot of the jokes that didn’t land with me. What I will say is the people involved with this show are definitely ones to watch and I hope to see more from Cellar Door Theatre Company in future. I particularly would like to see where The Ticking goes from here as I feel like with some further work it could become a must-see show.
⭐⭐⭐1/2
This run has now finished. You can follow Cellar Door on Instagram here.
More photos of this show and others are over on my Instagram.
I was gifted tickets for this show in exchange for an honest review.
