Six characters in search of authorship, helped by a facilitator, are drawn from forms of fantasy and fiction to forms of expression that cut closer to their personal realities.  Jo Holmwood has chosen to play with words and ideas within the framework of a writers’ group meeting and,  while the word is lifted from the page [through monologue, duologue, recitation and reading], it remains a reflective, static piece. The playwright’s control of language is the predominant feature.  She plays with styles from porn poem to sizzling prose. The writing is vivid and invites a second reading more than a second viewing.  An impressive sequence of spot-lit monologues allows the characters to unpack something of their inner selves, but despite the impressive lyricism to Anthony Brennan’s closing meditation on death, it remains fragmentary.

The characters emerge as a group of unexceptional individuals, capable of longings, unhappiness, petty rivalries and flashes of creativity. The acting is sparing and naturalistic - the interplay between the four men and two women has an authentic ring to it. Furnished only with a table and chairs, the stony surrounds of the Boys’ School provide a bleak and not wholly appropriate setting.   Holmwood’s direction maintains a focus and concentration that makes much of the limited scope of the piece.

Derek West