The Unfriend, Little Theatre
When a holiday acquaintance who comes to stay turns out to have a deadly secret, husband and wife Peter (played by Jordan Handford) and Debbie (Emma Bamford) must work out how to protect their family. Written by Steven Moffat, this suspenseful comedy of manners at The Little Theatre in Leicester is pacey and fun under the direction of Jane Towers.
Mild-mannered Peter and Debbie first meet Elsa Jean Krakowski (Rachael Barker-Evans) on a cruise ship, where her conversational skills allow her to manoeuvre her way into being invited to come visit them in London, despite the couple finding her constant questioning rather annoying. But shortly before her arrival, Debbie discovers that their soon-to-be house visitor may have a murderous past.
Peter and Debbie quickly race to come up with an excuse not to host this could-be-killer but are hindered by their British politeness and aversion to offending Elsa.
As Elsa ingratiates herself with the family’s children and neighbour, Peter and Debbie increasingly struggle to align the seemingly perfect Elsa in their home with the monster she supposedly is. At times, the fart jokes and Trump references drag the show down, but overall the script is decent and kept me laughing and guessing throughout.
The cast is at full strength in this play, with everyone contributing to an engaging performance that doesn’t seem to put a foot wrong in the acting department.
Jordan Handford plays an increasingly exacerbated Peter and particularly shines in the more farcical elements of the play with quick wit and well projected facial expressions. Playing opposite him is Emma Bamford, who effectively portrays a concerned mother who is also conflicted by her desire to not offend or lie, despite the potential murderer in her home. The two of them have strong chemistry and bounce off each other as their characters spiral into madness.
Perfectly contrasting the couple, is Rachael Barker-Evans’ Elsa, a brash, Trump-loving anti-Vaxxer American. Barker-Evans smoothly transitions from charismatic to conniving, with good accent work throughout. She is utterly convincing as a master manipulator.
Thom Jones and Amélie Wilson-Knight are believable stroppy teens, playing son Alex and daughter Rosie, respectively. Jones’ droning “Muuuum” provides plenty of comedy in the first act.
David Lovell as the neighbour and Allan Smith as PC Junkin round out the cast, both bringing excellent comic timing to their scenes. The Neighbour just wants to be listened to, and Lovell brings exquisite snark and passive aggressiveness to his oft-repeated mantra of “you’re a busy man.”
Tristan Knowles’ set design, brought to reality by master carpenter Dave Towers, is incredibly detailed. When the set unfolds from a cruise ship deck to reveal a fully furnished home is quite the wow moment. The full set is used to good effect, with frequent use of the stairs and all the different rooms including a memorable scene involving the downstairs lavatory.
The Unfriend is a dance of manners, comedy and suspense executed at the highest level by the talented Leicester Drama Society and is well worth a watch whilst it is showing at The Little Theatre this week.
