The quick and humorous script is delivered with a dry wit and insight that has the audience really laughing.
Set in a coffee shop, the story follows eight characters: a pair of heavies who seem to be biding their time, a young couple on a first date, the duo who run the place and a famous author who is shortly met by his wife. Interaction between the pairs is minimal; in fact, the script has a snapshot approach, visiting each in turn and adding a little more to their stories. The cafe owners become suspicious, the heavies philosophise, the young couple discover their complete incompatibility and the author and his wife are soon to be divorced. Amongst all the chaos that comes with supposition and speculation emerges a story with interesting features, where almost all of the characters finally interact. This is “life, death and coffee" indeed.
There are some standout performances: Jack Busby as Eric - a twitching, nervous and desperate young man taking a girl out after a misconstrued one-night stand - hits the perfect amount of hilarious and likeable. Martha Loader also does a great job as the arrogant Freddie and Tom Watts as waiter Kyle receives a lot of laughs.
Overall, the quick and humorous script is delivered with a dry wit and insight that has the audience really laughing. Yes, the story towards the end becomes a little silly and perhaps gives away a little more than it needs to - I feel the joy of this piece is in its subtleties - but I think you will forgive them.
