A croupier meets a mamma's boy and fails to have a dirty weekend away in the hilarious Kissing Sid James.
Jason Lawson's production of Robert Farquhar's Kissing Sid James at New Red Lion Theatre is a sweet balance of complete realism, and clumsy idealist romance inducing a stream of snorts and giggles as two adeptly hewn, forgivably flawed characters attempt to get it on.
You'll fall for Crystal immediately, if only because she's willing to give a guy like Eddie a chance. Eddie, played by the utterly hilarious Alan Drake, talks way too much, has an onerously grown moustache and probably lives with his mum. Regardless of how irritating his continuous chatter would be for anyone who met him, his unconquerable positivity and genuine compassion for Crystal cajole the audience completely.
Lipgloss-drenched croupier Crystal – a superb Charlotte Mckinney – allows herself to be whisked away to a seaside hotel in the way only Eddie can whisk someone away; that is, in his orange car with all its mod cons, accompanied by an incessant stream of chatter and promises of house champagne.
Farquhar's characters are undoubtedly the unforgettable aspect of this play, and it's Mckinney and Drake's flawless embodiment of them that stays with you after the final applause. The two make a believable, almost familiar couple. Though McKinney looks much younger than the character she portrays, you'd have to be a real stickler to complain about it. Her back and forth with someone who just won't shut up is priceless.
Though homely Eddie and lonely Crystal seem an uncomplicated pair, they're difficult characters to play and could easily become exaggerated. Mckinney and Drake manage to mock their characters gently and with enough respect for us to laugh along. They expose their layers with perfect pace to a rapt audience.
Kissing Sid James is a great start to 2011 for the team at New Red Lion Theatre who also have a spring programme well worth casting your eye over.
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