Review: The Sequel, Kings Head Theatre

There’s no one more self-involved than an author: solitary workers who demand praise, blending introspection with profitability. Particularly when work is based on real life, but slightly twisted and malformed to best fit metaphors, authors play with real people as if they were toy dolls to be discarded once the fascination is over. This is a scathing perspective on authorship, and naturally not one which applies to all authors, but it is one that writer Lucas Closs examines closely in comedy-drama The Sequel. 

Grace, better known as G.T. (Nisha Emich), returns to her small hometown, nine years after the release of her wildly successful novel, which mined the town’s residents for inspiration and does not receive the welcome she anticipated.

We meet her at her first stop: the café she wrote of as a homely space, only to discover that the exact table she described in her novel is now the only table there, its cloth even changed to better match her imagined description. It is run by John (Jim Findley), one of her muses and mentors, who has given up the passions that defined him in her story to give book-themed tours, and is now owned by Martha (Julia Pilkington), a young woman whose family didn’t make the cut as inspiration and who has therefore refused to read the novel out of spite.

From here, the tale only grows weirder, and much, much funnier, as John and Martha desperately offer G.T. inspiration for her sequel, hoping to draw in visitors, as the town now relies on tourism for profit. Closs’s script is side-splittingly sharp, cemented by strong performances and clever direction from Imy Wyatt Corner that makes you forget the four walls of the café confining the piece. Findley, in particular, stands out: his consciously quirky performance and absurd physicality root the heart of the piece. “You canonised me,” he exclaims, and you feel the weight of being made and immortalised. Pilkington hits comedic beats with ease, both in her actions and reactions, with an extended bit about a previous job as digital content creator for a dog-fighting ring, leaving me struggling to catch my breath.

Featuring live music played by two musicians above the stage, the experience feels almost whimsical, like something not quite real. Peiyao Wang’s costume and set design elevate the piece, with piles of chairs, spilled ink and mysteriously similar costumes bringing absurdism into sharp focus. Though a comedy-drama, the comedic moments are where the show truly shines, while the drama could use a little more bite to fully land the depth of its weighty themes.

Hilarious and engaging, with stellar performances across the board, The Sequel is a wonderful escape to someone else’s home.

Written by Lucas Closs
Directed by Imy Wyatt Corner
Produced by Ella Carmen Dale for The Deep Stage
Associate Director: Cassia Thakar
Lighting Design by Catja Hamilton
Set & Costume Design by Peiyao Wang
Composer & Musician: Deniz Dortok
Musician: Lydia Cochrane
Production Assistant: Aoife Pallister Begadon

The Sequel plays at Kings Head Theatre until Saturday 2 May.