A Knuckleball, in baseball terms, is a pitch which twists and dips at the last minute, throwing the batter off guard and making a strike. And this play certainly does that!Wtitten by William Whitehurst, Knuckleball enjoyed a sell-out season in San Francisco last year, and deserves to do the same here. It is difficult to give a synopsis without spoiling it for the audience. So apologies for this being slightly short.This is an emotionally charged production. In the wrong hands it could end up as over-cooked ham, but here it is superbly handled by Judy Merrick and Bryan Kaplan who clearly know how to act.The action is set in Ross's bedsit; authentically recreated by Mike Lees with pizza boxes, porn and pants strewn around. Their two characters open with all the subtlety of a bull in a china shop, to the strains of the Star-Spangled Banner. Ross and Trish are very obviously in love, and for once the world is perfect.Ross is from a humble background, and is haunted by the sudden disappearance of his childhood soul-mate with whom he used to play baseball. Trish, however, has come from a more privileged upbringing and we soon discover she too has a past and it is not what we expect. The twists and turns start coming thick and fast. Although the acting is superb, I couldn't help feeling there were moments when the actors just needed to take that one extra step over the cliff perhaps. But overall, and a rarity at the fringe, a pleasure to see a piece of well-written drama well acted. This is a piece that deserves more press and a longer run somewhere more high profile, and this reviewer would definitely pay to experience this rollercoaster of emotions again.
