Writer: Guy Woods
Director: Benedict Crosby
Waking up without any idea where they are, where they’ve come from or even their own name (for the first ten minutes anyway), protagonist Jon begins their journey through the eponymous Sobcentre. Run by Cathy, we are told it is an institute of healing – how legitimate this claim is and what exactly this healing might entail is left to our imagination as we experience The Sobcentre through the fractured psyche of Jon.
It’s an engaging setup that, like many aspects of the show, has its ups and downs. The audio and video work that keeps us in line with Jon’s drifting mind at times hits its mark well, such as when the original soundtrack by Josh Christopher and the energy of the cast sync up, but misses with sections such as the ‘confessionals’ where microphone stands are brought on stage for Jon’s fellow patients to wax nostalgic into. These sections feel superfluous at best, distracting at worst.
This is a shame, as both actors portraying these patients (Alexander Holley and Imogen King) do a fine job creating distinct voices and movement for the variety they’re given. Holley in particular injects an impressive texture and passion into Welshman Desmond, showcasing impeccably-paced anger toward Jon (Kate Crisp) after a wounding comment from the latter that builds into an apoplectic rage that is easily the highlight of the night.
But this is a moment that comes near the beginning of the play – oddly enough it’s at the end when things are least engaging. In an unusual move, writer Guy Woods chooses to answer many of the questions about the amnesiac Jon one would typically leave to the audience’s imagination, offering instead some remarkably dull revelations. While Crisp is a charming performer, Jon remains a stunted character and often seems to go through the same arc in every scene –at first apathetic and cheeky then slowly more endearing and apologetic, before finally learning to be more considerate. It’s good the first time, but not so much the fourth.
The climax of the play is indicative of all the above; the staging and music are brilliant as a kangaroo court is improvised to put Jon on trial, Cathy (Amelia Partridge) throwing a feathered scarf over her head as she mounts a stepladder to act as judge, while Desmond pulls a typewriter out of thin air. All good fun, until the trial itself starts and the great secrets of Jon’s life come to little more than mundane relationship drama, a far cry from the show’s wonderfully surreal undercurrents.
The fact that it remains enjoyable despite these flaws is a testament to the multi-faceted talent on display, but in its current state these efforts amount to fragments of fun that lack a unifying core.
Runs until 2 March 2024
