"The Memory Of Water" by Shelagh Stephenson.

The Duchess Theatre, Long Eaton.

This Riverside Drama Company's presentation is about three sisters; Teresa, Mary and Catherine, as they come together on the eve of their mother’s funeral. The three each have different memories of the same events, causing constant bickering about whose memories are true. As the story unfurls, all their hidden lies and self-betrayals are revealed.

The play was made into a film called "Before You Go" in 2002, which I decided not to watch before seeing this production, as I wanted this to be my first experience of this story.

Lizzie Norris plays Teresa, the organiser of the trio, who we discover is not that organised herself, as she has already mislaid her organiser! I particularly enjoyed a really realistic performance of drunken Teresa. With most drunken characters there is sometimes a tendency to go slightly over the top, or present a childish version of a drunk. Lizzie nailed the drunken Teresa with a fully believable performance. How much method acting involved I would not like to say!

Jane Harris plays the middle sister Mary, who is the only one of the sisters who can see Vi. But is this just a memory in Mary's mind or is Vi a ghost? There are several emotional moments with Mary and Jane really cornered the emotional side of her character. Maybe it's the inbuilt emotional side of Mary that enables her to see, or conjure up Vi's image.

Alex Dornan who plays the youngest daughter Catherine. Catherine has had many lovers and needs to be in love, or at least to be loved by somebody, and when she isn't, this throws her whole life off kilter, and she uses drugs as a crutch. 

All three sisters recall various memories of their childhood, strangely many not quite recognised by each sister as being what really happened, well according to their recall.

Donna Osmond plays the deceased mother Vi. We are given the impression that Vi had many male admirers in her day and was a glamorous woman who liked to dress up and go dancing. Her glittery green costume shone almost as much as the actors. We are given the impression that Vi is either an image brought back from Mary's memory bank, or a ghost and this is highlighted by swamping the stage in a green light whenever she appeared, and then exited behind the wardrobe.

Dan Bates plays Frank, Teresa's husband. who after comforting a drunken Teresa, admits that his heart is not in the job that they both make a living form and would prefer to run a pub as his dream job, something more.....simple! Every time I see Dan on stage he always plays characters with substance and an accent. He is chameleonic and a master of accents and nails both character as well as their accent. Plus it is quite startling how a flat cap, glasses and a moustache can change how a person looks.

Jack Workman plays Mike, a married doctor who is currently having a relationship with Mary. He can't leave his wife (yet) as she has ME, although Mary disbelieves this after seeing a photo of the pair at an event. Mike is a well-known face and is successful in his role as a TV doctor, although what comes out later in the play, could be the fly in his ointment! 

All six actors prove what wonderfully good character actors they are. Not only that but their natural flow in character and speech really make you believe in who they are and the way they are interact with each other. I for one could see past the actor to believe the character.

The story could have been set in any decade, and the furniture in Vi's bedroom could not give away any particular era for the set, only that Vi seemed to have a penchant for classic furniture. Only some of the comments and references made by the characters indicated any set era.

The set, by the way, is really impressive. Designed by Rachel Bates, it filled the whole stage, making you feel that you were a fly on the wall in Vi's bedroom. The amount of props on set were impressive, and sourced by both Rachel Bates and Liz Turner!

I loved the Yorkshire accents; Mike was the only one without an area-specific accent, but that is because of his job and his TV standing, and this alone set him apart from the others, giving him a more middle-class image.

Directed by Rachel Bates, who has used the silent segments well to create certain anticipation for what the next character says. The play comes across as a very natural way that the sisters would react and interact with each other, and as I previously said, you feel like a fly on the wall of a private conversation between a group of people.

There is a soundscape in the first act that indicates the wintery weather in the play and you actually start to feel cold just hearing the wind howling outside the window on stage. The volume of the sound design was also spot on, with the horn from the funeral car giving distance to the awaiting hearse.

Light Design wise, there was nothing flashy or special, no need for spots etc, but the fades, as well as the simple green swathes, created a sympathetic effect. Sometimes simple is best, and most affective. Both sound and light presented by Dave Martin.

There is plenty of comedy in this play, especially in the "dressing up" scene using the late Vi's clothes, as well as the brilliant script. There are so many excellent comedy lines, but it also takes a cast of excellent character actors to bring those lines, funny and heart-breaking, to life.

"The Memory Of Water" is at The Duchess Theatre, Long Eaton until Saturday 19 March.

Photos courtesy of Paul Norris.