The Unfriend

This is a great comedy farce written by Steven Moffat. It starts aboard a cruise ship where Peter & Debbie meet the charming American Elsa Jean Krakowski. They become 'holiday' friends, and Debbie reluctantly gives her their email address. A while later she invites herself to stay with them, they can hardly say no. It would be rude.

The play starts on the ship with the cast saying their goodbyes. Once the curtains open we are inside the home. The set is very good, being the lounge and kitchen, there is a door leading to the garden, stairs to the bedrooms, and door to downstairs toilet and the front door. The lighting and sound is also good. Hannah Rogers has a great cast with this play, you can tell everyone has worked hard building their characters, and getting the comedy timing just right.

With the imminent arrival of Elsa, Peter and Debbie Google her and find out she may well be a murderer. Vic Milne plays Peter, he is just right in the role. He tries to keep the peace, and ends up getting himself tired with one little white lie after another. Vic has some great lines, and his comic timing is spot on. Stevie Parker plays Debbie his wife, they work very well together, she too has great lines and comedy, Stevie has to cover her husband's lies, she gets very hysterical at times. They want Elsa to leave and keep making things up to get her to go but they don't want to seem rude. Di Buck is just right as the loud, brash American, Elsa. She is quite open about the different murders but doesn't seem to think there's anything wrong in what she has done. Di gave Elsa the feel good vibes, and everyone really liked her. Oliver Ing plays Alex the son, he's every bit the teenager, playing on his xbox or PlayStation all the time, not being helpful and expecting his parents to do everything for him. His first entrance, calling his mum over and over again, was very funny. Elsa helps him get fit and he becomes a much nicer person. Alysha Taylor plays Rosie the daughter, she a bit more independent than her brother, but still likes being at home. It was also funny when she heard her dad say her Grandma was ill, telling her parents to leave to go see her, allowing Elsa to offer to stay and look after them; they also develop a great friendship. Tim Schuler takes on the role of the interfering neighbour. He's a great character, he just seems to appear at different times during the play. Always complaining about something mostly, to start with, the fence that he wants them to help contribute to paying towards fixing. He's the helpful type that eventually you just want to go away. He too has made friends with Elsa, who making him lots of cups of tea, eventually convinced him the fence is his responsibility and he shuts up about it. Lastly we have PC Junkin, played by Richard Barnett, he also gets himself into the mix befriending Elsa - the toilet scene was very funny. The play ends as Elsa leaves the family, everyone wishing her well breathing a sigh of relief, apart from the neighbour who's sat at the table, then ending up head down on the table, with the family looking on in horror, did Elsa get him? Was he poisoned?

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