March 7, 2014
Polly is the tale of a disintegrating marriage, after the wife has had an affair with the husband's best friend. The twist is that because they're trying to get their daughter Polly into the local Catholic school their rows are played out in front of Father Jeremy whom they're trying to schmooze. Chris Pike plays the uncomfortable Father perfectly, getting laughs with beautiful comic timing and complete sincerity.
Polly herself, ever-present in spirit, is entirely absent in body, a mysterious and godlike figure. The play is an interesting exploration of conscience and religion, and the lengths two people will go to for their children but not for each other.
Wife Natalie (Missy Malek) was played unrepentantly, which I enjoyed. She was written with strength and determination, but I didn't find her completely coherent as a character, comprising too disparate traits. Husband Harry (Joshua Dolphin) was believably desperate and therefore willing to hurt. Their break-up seemed a little insubstantial, more like the end of a student relationship than a 13-year marriage, but that's understandable. Malcolm the adulterous friend (Mike Fanthorpe) was great fun, a naive guest who has no idea what he's just walked into.Some of the dialogue I found a little too broken. In going for a rather Pinter-esque realism, it lacked good solid speeches, and this was a shame because the more crafted dialogue, particularly when all 4 characters were together, really shone. For the same reason I would have liked less swearing - it was not as eloquent as the swift rejoinders and put downs that Harry specialises in.
The play was well-structured, and a flashback to sunnier times was well-written and well acted. The shortness of some of the scenes made me think Howard Coase might be aiming eventually to write for TV rather than the stage. But overall it was a good opener to the New Writing Festival.