STORMS, MAYBE SNOW
Seven Dials Playhouse
★
“the play simply does not justify all the work put into it”
The quick summary here is that four actors were working extremely hard with material that wasn’t really worth their effort. Could it have been? Possibly. But then it was just too long. So the pitfalls of being both writer and producer/director of your own work were laid bare.
Miranda Lapworth, artistic director of Lovely, Dark and Deep Productions, clearly has a vision. Her play is a family drama. Arriving at their beach house, long-term married couple Jack and Lou Marley (Neil Sellman and Jenny Lloyd Lyons) are preparing to celebrate Jack’s birthday with their daughter Marianna (Steph Sarratt) and partner Isobel (Sarah Cameron-West). The couple spar and joke, playing a long-running family game of Film Relay (to be recommended for car journeys), which speaks to their deep connection.
But Lou has recently been diagnosed with cancer. They are struggling to come to terms with this. Is she actually ill or not? Then there is the relationship between mother and daughter. It’s bad. It’s going to get even worse before the play is out. And what about the relationship between Marianna and Isobel? They seem very much in love. There is a beautiful moment in the first act when Isobel sings a love song she (of course, Miranda) has written to Marianna to demonstrate to her untrusting parents how much she cares. It is a great song; put to music by Ward Baker, it is worthy of Sondheim.
Unfortunately, the writing is riddled with clichés. The underlying metaphor of the ocean for the relationships is a cliché. The failure of the daughter – an intense performance by Sarratt – to see just how much her mother is struggling, is a cliché. The deepening involvement of Isobel in the family dramatics is predictable. There are twists and turns a-plenty but they are clumsily executed and so, where some ruthless direction maybe could have saved the play, they fall flat. Then there is just too much ‘business’ with food, cups, plates, shopping. If all that were cut out, we would see less of the hardworking props team pacing in and out of the set, and the focus on the human drama playing out would be greatly improved.
The cast and technical team are well chosen. The set is cleverly designed to support the action and Sarah Spencer’s soundscape gives a worthy background. The actors gave strong performances although the play falls short. Watch for Cameron-West in the future. She has a magnetic stage presence. As the angry daughter, Sarratt creates a believable, if irritating, character. Lloyd Lyons does ‘intense and spiky’ with great energy. Selman complements her as the kind, steady husband.
In the end, however, the play simply does not justify all the work put into it. It could do with a long hard look and maybe one third coming out. Even then, it might not have anything new to say about families, relationships and their undercurrents. But we could sit back and just enjoy the ride.
STORMS, MAYBE SNOW
Seven Dials Playhouse
Reviewed on 17th September 2025
by Louise Sibley
Previously reviewed at this venue:
BLUE | ★★★★ | March 2024
SUNSETS | ★★ | September 2023
STEVE | ★★★★ | February 2022
