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Starfish

 
Richard Beck Review by Richard Beck 3 Published: 13 Nov 2025 Bread and Roses Show Dates: 11 Nov 2025-15 Nov 2025

Billed as a dark comedy, Starfish, by theatre company Two Right Feet, makes its London debut at the Bread and Roses Theatre. Written by Offie-nominated writer Richard Fitchett and directed by Lucy Appleby, the play references an adaptation of Loren Eiseley’s oft-told story The Star Thrower.

Moments of humour combine with an entertaining story.

Eric (Peter Saracen) is an Abba-loving homeless man who knows under which garden pot Cheryl (Emma Riches) hides the emergency key to her house. He decides to let himself in and cooks dinner in readiness for her and her partner Tim’s (Ed Jobling) return from a day’s teaching. The smell of food raises their suspicions even before Eric emerges from the bathroom. Tim’s initially threatening attitude softens under Cheryl’s influence and the realisation that allowing Eric to stay the night could be seen as an extension of all the good they do through their monthly charitable donations.

The one-night stay, however, becomes a week, then a month, and eventually many more, as Eric increasingly takes over the house, remodelling it to his own taste. Attempts to palm him off on Karin (Lisa Minichiello), who runs a shelter for homeless people, come to nothing. The twist in the story reveals the truth about Eric and ultimately sees him move on. It had to happen – but how and why becomes the play’s central question.

Starfish requires a willing suspension of disbelief to accept the initial circumstances and the rationale behind the couple allowing a complete stranger to live in their home. What fascinates is the subtle way Eric carries out his clearly well-planned manoeuvres to create the home he desires. The couple’s accommodating nature is commendable, if not always credible, and there is an overt message about the appalling state of homelessness in this country and what we could all do to help.

A surprising 15-minute interval interrupts the flow and extends the running time to 95 minutes. Performances are solid, while moments of humour combine with an entertaining story that carries an important social message.

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The Blurb:

Two Right Feet presents

Starfishby Richard FitchettDirected by Lucy Appleby In this black comedy, a couple are confronted with, and try to help an ABBA-loving homeless person, they are forced to question their ideals as the story behind the intruder unravels and they discover that it wasn’t just an accident of fate that brought them together.