Reviewer: Christine Stanton
Writer: Katie Redford
Director: Rob Watt
“Touching Two-Hander“
4 / 5
Mila has received her GCSE results (not that she’ll tell anyone what she got) and has finally finished school for the summer. So, what better way to celebrate than a holiday to the seaside in Scarborough with her mum – fish and chips on the beach, dance machine battles and happy hour at the local pub for a classic British getaway. But what mum Lorna isn’t aware of is that it won’t just be the two of them on the trip, as Mila’s nans ashes in a sandwich bag have joined them as well.
Katie Redford’s script is a brilliantly touching two-hander between a sullen teenager angry at the world and desperate to make a change, and young mum Lorna (Eleanor Henderson), who got pregnant at 15 and consequently never got to live out her teenage years the way she’d planned, so still desperately wanting to spend her time getting drunk, meeting blokes and having fun. The dynamic between the two will be familiar to many – mum embarrassingly trying to ‘keep up with the kids’ by doing Tik Toks and Mila (Olivia Pentelow) preferring to spend the day shut in her room on her phone texting her friends. Their surface level interactions are relatable and humorous, but there’s also a lot more depth to the writing than just standard mum and daughter stereotypes, and the main draw of the show comes from the intricacies within their characters personalities.
Considering the show is only an hour long, you still very quickly become acquainted with both Lorna and Mila – understanding not only their relationship with other, but their overall outlooks on life in general. Mila is very progressive – hating the unrealistic body expectations set for women and exasperated at climate change escalating with no action being taken. Lorna on the other hand, is a lot more laid-back and dismissive of things she singularly doesn’t have the power to change, instead internally resentful towards Mila’s dad for leaving them and starting a new life in London, no matter how present and attentive he is towards Mila. They discuss various conflicts that affect them – such as Lorna’s relationship with Mila’s grandma, or the racism, both implicitly and explicitly, that Mila experiences for being a different skin tone to her mum. These issues are only gently touched on but are done sensitively and come across well.
Henderson and Pentelow are perfectly cast in their roles – completely embodying the characters and ensuring that both the comedic and emotive interactions are aptly timed. They’re both extremely charismatic on stage, and fully exude the warmth needed to connect their backstory to the audience. The set (Bethany Wells) is intriguing – completely empty aside from a couple of tables and a few TV screens. The screens periodically place the audience in the various locations – a video of some pebbles on the beach or the backdrop of an Italian restaurant for example, creatively and succinctly staging each scene without needing to go overboard.
This touching and endearing story is a quick snapshot of mother-daughter relationships as well as the struggle to fit in, understand the world around you and come to terms with yourself, no matter what generation you’re part of.
Runs Until 2 March 2024, then continues to tour
Photo Credit: Chris Saunders
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