Dead To Me at the Northern Stage, Newcastle Review
Dead To Me
Northern Stage, Newcastle
30 September to 3 October 2014
Reviewed by Anna Barker
Last night, we had the pleasure of attending two separate plays at Northern Stage. The first play, When We Embraced, is reviewed separately. By the time the second play, Dead To Me started, we were a little numb from the rather uncomfortable chairs in Stage 3 (the smallest of Northern Stages 3 theatres) so I wasn’t overly keen on staying for the second play. However, I’m pleased we did.
Dead To Me is a two-hander, featuring a Psychic (played by Tessa Parr) and Steven (Gary Kitching). Initially, Steven is a skeptic, only visiting the Psychic because a woman at work has given him a gift voucher. Gradually, the play unfolds as Steven visits again and again. With each visit, the situation tilts slightly further from that expected.
Both performers give an excellent display in this short play. Tessa Parr’s Psychic is unsettling, jittery and weird. Gary Kitching’s Steven begins as a normal, grumpy, unassuming kind of bloke but transforms into someone much darker by the end of the play. Stephen”s journey from a reasonably balanced person, to a needy and vulnerable man looking for forgiveness, before realising his potential and almost sinister power over others leads the audience to question the way our minds search for answers and then turn us into the different people, and not always for the better.
Each of the four scenes are separated (unaccountably) by excepts from some of the less well known Elvis Presley songs, momentarily giving the theatre a mirror-balled cabaret feel, which despite seeming a bit out of place, was oddly satisfying.
There’s a lot to like here, some real laughs, but this goes places that are quite dark and a little uncomfortable.
Overall an entertaining and well performed drama, perhaps a little predictable in the where it was going to end up, but well-acted and a great way to spend an hour.
Northern Stage is a modern theatre and arts venue, located within the Newcastle University site. This means parking may not always be straightforward but there is on street parking outside the university which is free after 6.30pm. The theatre has a licensed bar and restaurant, and there are also snacks available. Ice cream was on sale during the 15 minute interval. The theatre is fully accessible.
Rating: 4/5
Tickets cost £10
Dead To Me is at the Northern Stage, Newcastle until 3 October 2014. For more information or to book tickets click here or call the box office on 0191 230 5151.
Northern Stage, Barras Bridge,Newcastle Upon Tyne,Tyne and Wear, NE1 7RH
