Review: Mates, Hen and Chickens Theatre

When friends get together it can be difficult enough to arrange a simple outing or gathering, with so many different tastes and ideas to consider. In Mates, written by and performed by Ciaran Duce, Jack Staddon, Joseph Ollman and Kieran Urquhart, four actor friends are facing a far bigger challenge.

The four last acted together many years ago when they starred in the campy teen-drama Wolf Boys, and their careers have largely stalled since. So, when a fan of the show, a mysterious wealthy ‘Prince’, offers to finance them to produce a play together, the overzealous Max (Ollman) leaps at the chance. Max assembles the cerebral Luke (Duce), the reluctant Cosmo (Staddon) and the chaotic JJ (Urquhart) to develop ideas for what they can perform. They’ll have to work quickly: they must deliver in four weeks or face a massive financial penalty for breach of contract. This launches a frantic and fascinating meta exploration of the creative process behind developing a play, as the group consider and discard different approaches. They even learn more about each other along the way.

The ensemble have written a thoughtful and entertaining ‘behind the scenes’ look at the issues that theatre creatives must consider. What makes a catchy title (after they deride ‘Mates’)? What topics are overdone, too extreme or too boring for an audience to relate to? What genre and style should it take? The story features multiple play-with-a-play scenarios as the group test out their ideas, with varying enthusiasm from the others. Each casts themselves in the lead role, which develops character growth, as each reveals both their own tastes and personalities, as well as gradually uncovering the hidden feelings from the others.

This experimentation provides a sampler menu of different genres of theatre, with director Will Merrick modulating the performances of the cast to provide each with its own distinct tone, often playfully exaggerating the stereotypes of the genre to great comic effect. Likewise, movement director Emily Orme has crafted a range of appropriately energetic or lethargic acrobatics, dances and movements for the cast to bring these styles to life. The unexpected opening scene is a brilliant statement of intent, as we watch a hilarious scene from low-budget sci-fi show Wolf Boys, which is a brilliant pastiche of campy, over the top 90’s children’s programmes like Power Rangers or Beetleborgs. The brightly coloured costumes handcrafted by the cast perfectly capture the spirit of the era.

The cast are primarily dressed in a uniform of all-white outfits as a blank canvas to craft their different ideas onto, whilst other props and costumes are used sparingly and creatively. For Luke’s avant-garde feature, the cast stick their heads through a blanket to represent the inner voices in your head, playing up the stereotypical incomprehensible nature of these performances. Cosmo’s pretentious exploration of topical social issues is derailed by the others adoring comedy hats and accents.

The micro-plays are further enhanced by Nick Coppell’s complementary light and sound: JJ’s horror story of possession features moody lighting and stereotypical thunderclaps, whilst Max’s comedic desert island adventure features jaunty steel pan drums and warm lights. The atmospheric performance lights suddenly shut off with a comic record scratch sound when we are jolted back into the ‘real’ world as one of the four challenges the direction of the play.

The enthusiastic and energetic cast showcases a range of acting styles, both ‘good’ and ‘bad’, throughout this tour of theatrical genres. To great delight, they cleverly conclude with a demonstration of the adage of ‘give the audience what they want’.

Written and performed by: Ciaran Duce, Jack Staddon, Joseph Ollman and Kieran Urquhart
Directed by: Will Merrick
Movement directed by: Emily Orme
Lighting and Sound by: Nick Coppell

Mates has completed its current run.