I have been going to the theatre for years but this was the first time I came out during the break and members of the audience were still genuinely laughing and smiling.
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On the rebound: Dundrum actor Declan Rogers plays the broken hearted, jilted Ulsterman who falls for a much older Glaswegian widow.[/caption]
‘Can’t Live Without You‘ staring Dundrum actor Declan Rogers was back by popular demand to the Lyric Theatre after having showed in the McNaughton Theatre and it certainly packed a punch on opening night!
The post-Troubles play masterfully directed by Conleth Hill opens with Stevie crying his eyes out on the sofa as he has been dumped by Ciara. His is living in a flat that is a mess and he just seems to have gone to the dogs… all she left him was a pink dressing gown which he was wearing. In his mental chaos he has turned to Buddhism for comfort.
This play romped through sex, sectarianism and even had a brilliantly performed comic piece when the two lovers, an elderly Glasgow widow and the broken hearted, jilted Ulsterman dressed as  Wonderwoman and Superman were compromised in his mother’s loving room in a difficult moment  by  Stevie’s mother Dorothy (Carol Moore) who’s sexual awareness is trapped in the values of the previous generation, and his bigoted Ulster-Scots speaking sister when the two arrived back from a holiday unexpectedly.
This play is definitely for adults as it touches hilariously on scenes of a sexual nature, but is all done so very sensitively. When both Martha (played by top Scottish comic actor Karen Dunbar) and Stevie, the toy boy, meet initially they are immediately attracted to each other. It is a sexual interest at first but certainly as the play ends, the audience are left wondering as the very conservative mother comes round to the ways of the current generation, that the two lovers just may have a long-term relationship.
The love relationship is a journey for both Martha and Stevie, a first time with someone else after their long-term relationships had ended. It was a voyage of discovery, embarrassment, pain and pleasure but in the end they all sat down to tea like one big happy family!
One scene that parodied an Ulster-Scots speaking woman saw Stevie’s sister played by Abigail McGibbon launch an Ulster-Scots full frontal assault of conversation at Martha who struggled to comprehend the ‘foreign language’.
It would be remiss of me to spoil the fun and tell you all the funny details. This is just one play you have to go and see. And do bring a hankie! You will probably wet your eyes laughing.
Can’t Forget About You runs on the Danske Bank Stage from 12 June to 5 July (previews 8, 10 & 11 June).
Tickets from £10 – £22.
To book contact the Lyric box office on 028 9038 1081 or online at:
18+.
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