In a work with a central theme of comebacks, what better play for actor Cathy Tyson to make her Everyman return after 20 years away, than with this new work by Stephen Sharkey.
Frank Donohue has been murdered and as the culprits bury his death in the chaos of the Liverpool Blitz, his daughter Theresa prays for revenge.
Tyson plays Angela, a woman so obsessed with keeping secrets, she has difficulty in separating fact from fiction. An intense role, demanding the very best from an actor, Tyson delivers the goods impeccably. There’s something in Angela that everybody will be able to relate to and the skill with which she is performed is, at times, breathtaking.
Vinnie Phelan, Angela’s lover, is the embodiment of every working man on the illicit up, who has fallen for someone they shouldn’t, and Niall Refoy’s performance holds such strength, almost single-handedly he encapsulates the dog eat dog mentality of wartime England.
Yet, without doubt, the performance of the evening belongs to Leanne Best for playing heart-broken Theresa with such style and emotion. Rarely are angst and turmoil delivered with such a steely edge, without it appearing forced or unnatural. Yet Best manages on all fronts.
Overall, Sharkey has written a tight, thought-provoking story that challenges morality and belief on many levels, with such an astute deftness of touch, it can easily resonate across the years to the world in which we live today and should be roundly applauded for doing so.
Production information can change over the run of the show.
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