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A bright, broad comedy, this could easily be a popular sitcom if it ever makes it on to the small screen.Summary
Rating
Excellent
Yes, We’re Related is not filmed before a live studio audience, but it feels like it could have been. That’s not a criticism however, as the popular mainstream sitcom appears to be a dying artform as shows increasingly become single camera affairs and more naturalistic. Yet writer Florence Lace-Evans has largely bucked this trend, and created a comedy which recognises that this kind of fare still deserves a place in the world.
While the overall plot may feel a little familiar, as two sisters meet on the first anniversary of their mother’s death to hold a celebration of her life, the way events unfurl remains sparky and unpredictable throughout. This is largely due to Sara (Florence Lace-Evans) forgetting to invite any guests, so that it becomes a three hander, with Saskia (Eleanor Griffiths) arriving with a phallic balloon, a gigantic chip on her shoulder and her overly enthusiastic boyfriend Mark (Fabian Bevan).
Out of all of the characters Mark is the one who seems to have stepped right out of a television screen. A hybrid of Joey and Chandler from Friends, he’s bursting with energy and goofiness, leaping around the stage, and responsible for a lot of the physical comedy in the show. In lesser hands the role could have felt annoying or plain childish, but Bevan has an innocent charm that makes Mark very likeable indeed.
Sara also starts out pretty wacky and one dimensional, but the character quickly develops and becomes more layered as we discover she’s desperate that nobody should go in to the bedroom to see the unusual friend she has made, and as a result of whom she is living in a hastily constructed tent made out of bed sheets in the living room. This unseen character leads to some of the play’s funniest, most farcical moments, and creates a pleasingly offbeat atmosphere.
The fractured relationship between Sara and Saskia also gives the play a notable edge. Both are deliciously uncomfortable around each other despite being siblings, and a bubbling undercurrent of resentment leads to the play taking a slightly more serious turn towards the end, with the reason for the trigger warnings becoming clear. Yet it echoes the best episodes of Only Fools and Horses, in that laughs are still present alongside pathos and poignancy.
Early on some of the jokes might be slightly too broad, and there’s a couple of lines of dialogue which feel slightly too polished, where a clever insult is a little too witty to be trotted out in the spur of the moment. You can also spot a few offbeat moments that are clearly set ups for jokes that will pay off later, but on the whole Yes, We’re Related, is a tight, funny and extremely well acted comedy that I’m certain would be a big hit if ever made for TV.
Written by: Florence Lace-Evans
Directed by: Fran Davies-Cáceres
Produced by: Lace-Evans Productions
Compositions & Sound Design by: Sarah Spencer
Lighting Design by: Oliver McNally
Yes, We’re Related is at The Other Palace until Sunday 17th November. Further information and booking are available here.
