The latest work by Jayne Woodhouse comprises of five monologues performed in the compilation of Lost Souls produced by Loosely Based Theatre. Each of the five characters may be recognised from our everyday life as they battle with their own addictions, mental health problems and difficulties that life in general creates.
David House gives a moving performance in Beautiful talking about his relationship with the dog he bought home from a man in the pub. Bella his faithful dog meant everything to him. Yet his struggle with alcoholism finds him separated from her. After his wife has thrown him out of the house.
Home Comforts takes place as a one-sided conversation performed by Rosannah Lenaghan as the Mother. With her daughter returning home and suffering from mental health problems she desperately tries to do what many parents like to achieve which is to help her get better. However the harder she tries the worse the situation becomes.
Neil Gardner in Eddie’s Encounter is rather an unusually short play. Throughout the entire performance, there is no doubt that drugs and illegal events have led to Eddie being visited by the man on the other side of the camera.
Chains tackle the impact of domestic abuse on friendships and outside relationships. Kayley Rainton plays the victim meeting up with a friend for a quick drink and catches up. Constant interruptions from her boyfriend quickly unravel the scale of abuse and control he holds over her. This subject is never an easy one to watch yet with the rise in domestic violence cases it’s definitely a subject that should be openly discussed more to raise awareness. Teaching people to understand what the signs of abuse are.
Woebot performed and directed by Calum Robshaw is an extremely thought-provoking conversation between Robshaw’s character Alex and his “Alexa” style woebot called Joy (Carmen Ali). The recent break up between Alex and his now ex-girlfriend appears to be a straightforward split. Without giving away too much of the plot I strongly suggest watching this production on YouTube and discover the truth for yourself.
The challenges for performing and filming during the lockdown has meant creatives need to find other ways to make these kinds of productions. Watching this series of short plays is a huge credit to all the actors and creative team at Loosley Based Theatre.
Each of the five monologues tackles a different situation. There are a couple that seems to be slightly far fetched but in an ever-changing world, this could perhaps one day be closer to reality than we would be comfortable with. My overall favourite short play was Beautiful the rich dialogue combined with House’s moving performance stood out to me, the conviction in his performance is definitely worth taking the time to watch.
Four Stars.
TITLES AND CAST
1. Beautiful. Written by Jayne Woodhouse. Performed by David House. Directed by Calum Robshaw. Edited by Matt Shears.
2. Home Comforts. Written by Jayne Woodhouse. Performed by Rosannah Lenaghan. Directed by Calum Robshaw.
3. Eddie’s Encounter. Written by Jayne Woodhouse. Eddie Neil Gardner. Camera Rachelle Grubb. Directed by Calum Robshaw.
4. Chains. Written by Jayne Woodhouse. Performed by Kayley Rainton. Directed by Calum Robshaw.
5. Woebot. Written by Jayne Woodhouse. Joy Carmen Ali. Alex Calum Robshaw. Directed by Calum Robshaw.
All of these are available to watch on the YouTube link below. https://t.co/C0Llz1netB
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