Review: DICK, Drayton Arms Theatre

Power. In the right context, it can be a beautiful thing. Something all those involved can enjoy. With that power is the see-saw effect of trying not to abuse it. “You’re my friend. I love you. I trust you.” Keep the words, change the situation and you can have catastrophic events. Dick at the Drayton Arms Theatre is pulling audiences down into that realisation, one intense scene at a time.

Five friends. Nine times out of ten, only in a room together for their birthdays. Mid-twenties: the most unsure times of a person’s life. Raw, emotional, and uncertain. Noah, an eloquently spoken and sexual story sharer, brings his friends together on his 26th birthday with one request: to tell him what their most intimate experience was. With the argument that sex is just sex, something that should simply be explored regardless of gender or emotions, Noah proposes the question of what more could he do with the desire to be better. And so, opens up with the theme of power imbalances, and how far would you go to please someone?

I have never been taken aback by a script as much as I was with Dick. Written and directed by the incredibly talented Adam Kinneen, the play explores conversations that are had between friends over drinks, but never really brought to light past the 3am bottles-on-lips nights.

The truthful nature of the dialogue, paired with the simple and natural direction of the cast, made for a perfect fly-on-the-wall perspective for audience members. The conversations consisted of quick-witted lines at a pace that felt organic, despite the fact we know how insanely they must have rehearsed it to get it right. Kinneen beautifully captured the dynamic of a friend group where no one is fully sure how they became a group due to the varying personalities, but nonetheless love each other and would go to great lengths for one another. Something that proves disastrous later in the play.

Joseph Lynch plays Noah, or dare I say embodies Noah to the point you cannot tell where the character starts and the actor ends. Magnetic work from Lynch, one that captures the audiences attention every time he enters the stage. From monologues that would send philosophy students into turmoil, to his ability to manipulate without realising it, Noah as a character is one that you have to remind yourself not to fully sympathise for. You strangely find yourself wanting to protect the character from himself. This is a masterclass in truthful acting. I hope to see more from Lynch in the future.

Frederick Russell stars as the charming Ruby. A man born to simply romanticise life and show others how to do the same. Russell’s chemistry with the entire cast creates a fluid performance that felt real. The glue of the group. He is acting, not performing. The entire time I was rooting for Ruby: for him, for his possible relationship with River, for him to simply live. Kinneen’s writing, partnered with Russell’s impediment of the writer-director’s vision, makes the beautifully complicated person that Ruby is. A raw portrayal that needs to be shared with a larger audience.

The supportive friend we all need in our lives is Bailey, played by the always incredible Andi Bickers. Bickers embodies the beauty of human emotions with a natural progression that had the room wanting to run up to the stage and hug them. As humans, none of us is one dimensional when it comes to emotions. Even the most bubbly, sarcastic, and funny characters, such as Bailey, have moments of breaking down and needing someone to comfort them for a change. Bailey never felt like a character, but more of a person who lived on through Bickers. This is what being an actor is all about, and it is a delight to see that they found that. 

Ruby’s sister, Cleo, is played stunningly by Nina Fidderman. It was lovely to see, as the play developed, Fidderman’s character start to feel more comfortable with the group of other characters and really became engrossed in their ways, only for it to be when she is most comfortable with them that she finds she needs them most. Cleo is the sort of character who you either see yourself in, or definitely know someone who would, and that made her so much more real. Fidderman is a brilliant actress, I only wish we saw more of her and the relationship between Cleo and Ruby more. Perhaps it was the whole point that we didn’t? Either way, Cleo was the ideal addition to the group dynamic and I loves the role she plays in it.

Tying up the group is River. The slightly shyer than the rest, dying to be free-spirited, Best Friend. Played by Max Brennan, River’s story I feel was sometimes overlooked. There is no doubt Brennan is a talented actor (and dancer), I just wish, like Cleo, we saw more of his story. River’s dynamic with Ruby is a tale as old as time. The ‘what are we’ conversations that are never had, but should be. Brennan’s portrayal really has us sympathising for River from start to finish, almost feeling protective of him. To get an audience to feel that much in a show is a true talent. A great performance. 

Dick is poignant and brutal. You walk out of act two with a completely different outlook than when you walked in, and that is what makes good theatre. 

This piece will stick with you long after you leave the auditorium. With scenes so long that it forces you to feel uncomfortable. Plays that make you feel human emotion in real time and force you to try to look away, make you learn something new about yourself.

Dick plays at The Drayton Arms Theatre until the 26 April

Photo credits: Abigail Dawn and Ameila Hawes (header).