Blue Cross Xmas

Published Friday 14 December 2007 at 16:10 by Kevin Berry

The Boxing Day sales ought to be a fertile arena for the dramatist.  

In Blue Cross Xmas, Nick Lane presents a kaleidoscope of misfit characters and comic happenings in the stock flow area of a department store. His actors play main roles, many secondary roles and enjoy pantomiming the myriad types seen in the store on Christmas Eve and Boxing Day. They portray the big rush of customers like a sporting event but their movements are poorly choreographed.

Taped voices are used to reveal the thoughts of shoppers, which is an untidy device that could go horribly wrong. It would be much better to have thoughts as exaggerated asides to the audience.

Robert Angell takes the key role as Des, a widower, to whom strange and bizarre things regularly happen. Des does not want commitment because he cannot risk the pain of disappointment. Meriel Scholfield gives a measured and sympathetic performance as the woman he rather likes.

Des is an interesting character, but too much happens around him, as a result of so much being packed into the play. 

Lane’s script has its funny moments and flashes of heartfelt insight but it will not be revived for a future Christmas unless Des and his story are given more space.