The Little Theatre’s April in Paris is a masterclass of a two-hander production, with ample heart running through its core.

John Godber’s 1992 presents a slice-of-life of a working-class Yorkshire couple’s Parisian adventure after they win a one-night romantic getaway to Paris in a magazine competition.

As Al (Steve Feeney) and Bet (Kat Seddon) navigate Paris’ tourist attractions, they, too, navigate their relationship. Strained by years of financial struggles, heightened by Al’s recent redundancy perhaps a holiday is exactly what their relationship needs to get out of this rut.

But Al’s battling his own demons, and initially tries to encourage Bet to take a friend instead. Eventually Bet encourages Al to come, but that doesn’t stop his anxiety over a ferry boat crossing and metro muggings.

The strength of Godber’s script is in the realism of the dialogue. Feeney and Seddon bat throw-away remarks, snide comments, and repetitive phrases between each other as if it were sport. This bickering is, in reality, a well-trod negotiation between two characters who dearly love each other but would rather say anything except “I love you”.

At first, Feeney’s Al appears to be a frustratingly grumpy man who refuses to do anything aside from antagonise his wife or spend time in his shed. But through the inspired use of monologues to the audience, we gain an insight into his psyche. Al suffers from depression, although the word is never uttered, and fears change.

Feeney effectively captures the subtle complexities of Al’s character. He delivers witty one-liners with excellent comic timing but is also expressive through his body language to portray Al’s anxiety and unease in novel situations. Sideways glances at the audience and at Bet betray a nervousness that the character is trying to conceal through jokes and standoffishness. Feeney is comfortable in the delivery of Godber’s script, perhaps aided by his performance as Eric in Godber’s Bouncers at The Little Theatre last year.

Knowing that Al is struggling, there is a risk that Seddon’s Bet could come across as callous and uncaring. However, Seddon toes the line with precision and presents Bet as frustrated and stuck, but ultimately a good person. She delivers sarcastic ripostes and jibes to Al in just the right way that we know there is no malice behind them.

Feeney and Seddon perform brilliantly together. They bounce off each other’s energy throughout the play and are a joy to watch. A particular highlight is listening to them putting on French accents whilst still maintaining their Yorkshire accents.

Although “Le toilet” garners laughs, Feeney and Seddon manage to develop their characters through the humour, too. These are characters with deep rooted insecurities, using humour as a distraction from how out-of-place they feel. Bet feels the judging eyes of everyone on her in a café, whilst Al can’t bear to be alone lest he risk embarrassment talking to a waitress. To portray characters with such humour and nuance is a true testament to Feeney and Seddon’s acting abilities.

Leigh Whites direction of the play is sublime. With pitch perfect pacing throughout, the purposeful mundanity of Godber’s script is allowed to shine, taking the audience on a journey with the characters.

There is nothing elaborate or overcomplex in this production. Indeed, Jake Smart’s scenic design is a mostly white space with a handful of chairs and boxes that are moved around to transform from a sofa into a ferry, a café, a bed. The walls are bare at the start of the production, which allows for a rather moving transformation by the end of the play.

Peter Flannery’s lighting design complements the stage design in its simplicity. For the most part the lighting is unobtrusive, but a square light is used to clearly signpost the monologues to help keep them separated from the main action.

This beautiful portrait of a relationship struggling with a cost-of-living crisis and depression deserves to be seen, so be sure to get down to The Little Theatre this week!