Caryl Churchill’s 2012 play Love & Information is not a typical play. It is made up of seven sections with various short scenes within each that can be performed in any order.
It’s the latest production from Cellar Door Theatre, directed by Theo Duddridge and with a cast of six playing over 100 unnamed characters.
The purpose of Love & Information is to show how both impact on our lives. At 90 minutes, some scenes have been excised with at least one taken from the random scenes that Churchill allows to be placed anywhere.
There is no linear narrative and no obvious connection between characters and scenes. This production opts to have on-stage handovers between scenes that work well in keeping the momentum going.
The company – Mark Bojan, Katy Richmond, Baillie Dobson (who performed with a wrist injury and a sling), Emma Cavell, George Lockwood and Tamaryn Payne – are all excellent at quickly swapping focus and emotions.
This is the kind of play that is a gift for an actor. In scenes such as ‘Fan’ and ‘Torture’ a violent turn is taken; in ‘Remote’ and ‘Recluse’ humour and tension are close neighbours; ‘Memory House’ and ‘Linguist’ are absurd; ‘Wedding Video’ and ‘The Child Who Didn’t Know Pain’ are group efforts.
With the idea of numerous permutations of the play, it is possible that each performance will be different – I’m not sure Cellar Door have taken this approach. The only scene which has to stay put is the final one, ‘Facts’, that brings both strands together.
Love and Information feels very contemporary in its format – two scenes have been interpreted here as TikTok video and as a podcast – bite-size sequences or microdramas that convey a feeling or a situation in a very short period of time.
In scenes like ‘Sleep’, ‘Sex’, ‘Affair’, ‘Grass’ and ‘Fired’, human interaction is spotlighted, however small. In ‘Lab’, ‘Schizophrenic’, ‘God’s Voice’ and ‘Wife’, the world becomes more complicated and disturbing, depending on the information given.
This is a challenging evening, but I enjoyed the variety and skill of the actors. Dobson has great comic style, Cavell an impressive folk singer vibe, and Payne offers quiet restraint.
This run has now sold out at Drayton Arms Theatre, but keep a look out if it resurfaces and follow Cellar Door on Instagram.
I’m giving this four stars.