Theatre Review - A Special Relationship

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We have been aware of Tim Marriott for a long time in various different guises. Firstly, at Royal Holloway college where my wife knew him in the 1980s. Then playing Gavin in the television sit-com " The Brittas Empire" in the 1990s.

We then lost contact whilst he pursued a teaching career before our paths crossed again thanks to the Edinburgh festival. Tim (jointly) won our Darkchat Award for Best Actor in 2022 for "Waiting For Hamlet" before winning the same award a year later for "Appraisal" (which he co-wrote). 

Then, last year five of us embraced our "stalker" instincts, tracking him down to Winchester and thoroughly enjoy his cricketing play "Jack's Ashes". 

As I live in Cardiff I don't got many chances to catch shows in London, mainly travelling there to visit ageing relatives nowadays, so I do try and seek out something entertaining at the end of what can be a stressful day! I was therefore thrilled to discover that I could see Tim's latest play before catching the last train back to Wales. I duly made my first trip to Turnham Green to the Tabard. a lovely welcoming pub with an excellent modern (Edinburgh Fringe-like ) venue.

"A Special Relationship" is a play co-written by Marriott and Jeff Stolzer. Like all good plays it it based on such a simple premise that you wonder why no-one has written it before. As we arrive in the impressive auditorium we are greeted by a lovely set and we are immediately transported into a posh English garden which is to be the setting for Monty's daughter's wedding to Pete's son. This is a two-hander showing the two father's meeting for the first time, a not uncommon occurrence you might think, the twist being that one is British and one American, hence the title.

So, not only do we have the drama of two men finding out about each other, their relationship with their soon to be married children but we also have the contrast between two men from different continents. And this really is the main thrust of the play. Naturally we deal with the difference in language, its use and words with differing meaning. We are not seeing anything new here but it still resonates and is funny. Where the play really takes off is the characterisation of our two protagonists. Monty is a typical up-tight posh Major with traditional ideas, firmly believing that things must be done in a certain way, eg the father of the bride paying for the wedding and making a speech. In complete contrast Pete is a chilled-out, relaxed drug-taking guy, who regularly ends every sentence with " bro". Again, this is quite generic dramatic territory setting up two opposites and waiting for a collision. However, the joy of this play ( and it is a joy to see such a well-written and well-acted piece) is that it avoids the obvious pitfalls of melodrama and lets the two of them find their own common ground. True to life they start circling around each other suspiciously and although each lifestyle is alien to each other gradually they begin to find similarities rather than differences.  

I suspect the entire audience was awaiting that "Donald Trump" moment to occur with bated breath. I had a feeing that Pete might easily have been a MAGA kind of guy and when his name was mentioned you could hear a pin drop as the audience collectively waited to see where the play would go. I for one was relieved when it proved to be nothing more than a name drop and the play proceeded calmly along.  

For me the most important part of any play is the ending, I feel that a poor ending can jeopardise everything that went before. Again, Messrs Stolzer and Marriott proved a safe pair of hands with a totally believable and honest conclusion, no unnecessary twists here. 

Good writing is nothing without great acting and here we are doubly blessed. I am already aware of Tim's charisma and ability to hold an audience's attention on stage, but I was particularly impressed by Brian Dykstra as Pete. He so inhabited his character I felt certain that he had had a hand in the writing but I was wrong. In a two man play it is essential that they are equally balanced and bounce off each other naturally and here we were blessed with a masterclass of watching two actors listen to each other and reacting accordingly. It sounds an obvious thing to day but, sadly, that is not as common as you might think.

Even though we are fans of Mr Marriott's acting and writing styles I cannot recommend "A Special Relationship" highly enough. It manages to tick the twin boxes of being both funny and poignant without trying too hard, being preachy or melodramatic.

Sadly, its London run has now ended but if it tours at a venue near you (it is due to travel to New York through June), do go. You won't regret it.