Review: Curating (Old Red Lion Theatre)

Review by Lily Melhuish

⭐️⭐️

Exploring the afterlife is a well-trodden path in the arts. From biting dramas to whimsical comedies, it’s a theme that taps into the human condition, our lust for life, and the yearning for something immortal. The possibilities should be endless; after all, we know nothing for certain about what happens when we die. But that very inevitability means it takes a bold idea to spark fresh thought or emotion, a task writer Helen Cunningham is willing to try.

Imagine the opening scene of Severance: sterile, bureaucratic, and slightly surreal. Now add a dash of existential dread and a plate of biscuits, and you have Curating, a dark comedy about life, death, and the eternal admin that apparently awaits us beyond the grave.

The premise is intriguing: Freya, played by writer Helen Cunningham, is a 29-year-old who dies unexpectedly and finds herself in an afterlife that looks suspiciously like an office. The setting is on brand for the chosen topic, an ominous waiting room, a state of limbo, a space to reflect before ‘passing on’. Except there is little time for such sensibilities in this production, as Freya is guided through her earthly dispatch by her personal ‘Curator’, played with impressive chutzpah by Gwithian Evans, a fluffy, bumbling grim reaper who’s more Hugh Laurie than harbinger of doom.

There’s a mountain of paperwork to be done, and blame is quickly placed on Freya’s untimely death and a shoddy printer, as her Curator remains frustratingly vague about where she is or what’s to come. Scarpering off—presumably to have a go at the new intern—Freya is left alone, though not for long. Enter John from down the hall, a similarly lost soul and taxidermist from 1898, who has also been abandoned by his Curator and thus gone snooping in this WeWork purgatory. His old-world charm offers the perfect setup for comedy through misunderstanding and miscommunication before the pair find common ground in intrinsically human ideologies about whether it’s possible to live a life without regret.

John, played by Trey Fletcher, comes with a tragic backstory, only to be expected from someone from a time where 29 was considered middle-aged at best. This should add depth, but instead his interactions with Freya feel oddly flirtatious, as if the pair were on a first date. This isn’t helped by the trivialness of their conversations, which resemble 60 minutes of universally dreaded small talk at a work Christmas party. For a character introduced as a faithful husband, even in death, the tone jars, and the search for jokes and innuendo undermines the emotional and philosophical weight the setup promises.

Although the performances are vibrant and broad, the pacing is off. Nikoletta Soumelids’s direction leans so heavily into tight comedic timing that it sacrifices natural rhythm. Lines feel anticipated rather than lived, making it hard to believe why Freya and John would feel so trusting of each other despite their 150-year age gap and largely opposing views of a life beyond. This absence of listening between characters impacts development and leaves their connection feeling superficial.

Visually, the set is charming in its simplicity: a desk, three chairs, and motivational posters featuring frogs, a clever nod to transformation and rebirth in folklore. It’s a neat touch, but like much of the play, it gestures toward profundity without fully embracing it. Andrea Matthea’s Matilda, John’s Curator and resident office personality hire, adds a quirky spark as she sucks on her strawberry vape, but even this modern flourish can’t sweeten the lack of narrative depth.

The script touches on religion, morality, and the meaning of existence, but only in sweeping statements. The intended message—take the chances life throws at you—lands softly, offering nothing we haven’t heard before. The climax, when it arrives, is underwhelming, and the characters leave only as acquaintances at most, a friendship merely of circumstance, much like many office relationships.

Curating is a light comedy with flashes of wit and earnest performances, but its execution delivers a purgatory of paperwork that never quite comes to life. Like a first date that never sparks, it leaves you wondering what could have been if it had dared to dig deeper.

Curating plays at the Old Red Lion Theatre until 10th November. Tickets from https://www.oldredliontheatre.co.uk/curating.html