Thespian and Proud , from the Cayman Islands, return to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in a digital recording of Kirsty Halliday’s play about the mechanics of relationships, Till Love Do Us Part.
Jan and Si, a young professional couple, are starting their life together and we watch them across the span of just over an hour as they question, needle, get close, and navigate the slopes and obstacles life sets in their way.
Filmed before a live audience, Halliday directs her own work and there are fine performances throughout from the two-person cast: Lorna Fitzgerald as Jen; Liam Oko as Si. The setting is a cosy and calm room where the friendship can grow into a life relationship, and lighting and sound cues (design by Erica Ebanks) clearly indicate scene and time changes.
The sound is generally fine – at its best when characters stay on stage and don’t speak lines off the side – and this is filmed well. In utilising some of the writer/director’s own experiences, Till Love Do Us Part tackles a couple of tricky subjects, notably miscarriage, but without undue sentimentality or using the plotline for shock value. It simply is what it is.
This isn’t one of the flashiest productions on the digital fringe in terms of its technical style, but the writing carries it through and this is a play which follows this pair’s journey with a full heart and a good balance of humour and compassion.
Fringe rating: ****
You can stream Till Love Do Us Part on the Fringe Player until the end of August: book your ticket here. You can read more about the production in its digital programme, and more about Thespian and Proud here.