Review: Incomplete, The Space

Special Someone Productions’ Incomplete is a candid reunion of two bygone lovers. A heartfelt tale of Gen X ghosting that offers an overly large slice of life, it sets The Space’s spring season off to a thoughtful start. 

A rural railway station sees the chance encounter of estranged lovers Phil (Mark Keegan) and Louise (Nadine Coulson) who stroll down memory lane as they await their elusive train. Writer Rebecca Mason then presents fragments of a forty-year span illustrating the couple’s lives both together and apart. Simplistic in its premise, Mason takes her inspiration from the lyrics of Human League hit Louise, after which her female protagonist is named. 

Both Phil and Louise have younger counterparts, depicted in 80’s flashbacks by Rowland Stirling and Kathryn Bates. This core quartet is well cast as the passionate youths match up to their wiser yet less daring seniors. Stirling’s geezer magnetism contrasts nicely to the socialist ambitions of his budding musician sweetheart. 

Four decades on from the heartbreak of Phil’s unexplained desertion, Coulson’s Louise is a simmered version of her former, fiery self. Coulson has a natural warmth and plays the thwarted music teacher with sincerity and sensitivity. Keegan’s Phil retains his mischievous flair although time has mellowed him. 

The mellowing of this production is, however, where it begins to feel incomplete. Mason’s meandering path through nostalgia observes the couple’s idiosyncrasies at the cost of higher stakes. It lacks the intensity of Brief Encounter or the adventure of Shirley Valentine. At two hours long, the play indulges in reflection and is short of onstage action. It is perhaps not surprising that Incomplete started life as a radio play as it is often too static for theatre. 

Trimming scenes would direct focus to moments of conflict such as Louise’s divorce to “bastard” ex husband Richard (Daniel Wain) or the loss of Phil’s wife Jo (Steffanie Freedoff). Though director Amalia Kontesi begins with the lover’s breakup, further scenes of the young couple’s past could be explored through an inverted narrative. Ending with their beginning could heighten the poignancy of the already bittersweet revelation about Louise’s son. 

The production avoids falling into a lament and this tale of ‘what could have been – or could be’ is left on a hopeful note. It’s a story that will undoubtedly resonate with an older audience who may carry similar burdens or regrets, although as a twenty-something viewer I could relate to the trials and tribulations of the young romance, thereby proving the wider appeal of what Incomplete could be.  

Written by Rebecca Mason
Directed by Amalia Kontesi
Produced by Maggie Razavi

Incomplete plays at The Space until Saturday 12 April.