Walking in the venue to Olivia Dean blaring on the speakers, placement cards strewn over a spilling table cloth and a thoughtful character sat alone, we enter very much in the middle of a birthday reception. Izzy Radford’s ‘Seating Plan’ is a glistening romcom with refreshing humour and dazzling wit, following two characters destined to meet year after year.

Mavis and David find themselves constantly sat together at a far away table for their mutual friends’ birthdays, forced to make polite conversation that very quickly steers into eccentric questions and drunk ramblings. When first impressions aren’t glamourous but certainly memorable, we watch their connection slowly grow as both flit between relationships and career paths.

The writing is straight out of a classic 90s romcom, with wit, limitless charm and snappy jokes with just the right amount of pop culture flair. Writer and female lead Radford is effortlessly funny and likeable as Mavis, playing a wildly outgoing and whimsical character who is criticised by David for being ‘too much’ as she talks excessively during their first encounter to calm the nerves. Meanwhile, George Airey’s David is calm, stoic and baffled. Through the years, their dynamics fluctuate to coincide with changes in their lives, with Mavis’ loud bubbly personality faltering when she is in a bad relationship or David getting boisterously drunk to mask the reality of his career trajectory. Across the years and taking place at the same setting, a force is clearly connecting the two.

With unpredictable writing choices, we feel as if we are onlookers at the birthday celebrations. Airey at one point takes a random seat in the audience and starts chatting to an audience member caught very off-guard as David begins sitting in away from Mavis initially.

With on-stage transitions between years, we are immersed in the whirlwind of their changing lives. On-stage costume changes are soundtracked with classic romcom songs – think Love Affair’s ‘Everlasting Love’ from Bridget Jones. The backdrop of pastel streamers and birthday balloons acting as an on-stage calendar, we are very much a part of the birthday celebrations and unfolding romcom. The choice makes us feel swept up in the story, following the characters through as they navigate their 20s even through the small snippets of each year.

A clear winner for any 90s romcom worshippers, ‘Seating Plan’ shines with witty humour and characters you can’t help but root for. Will the tale end in a happily-ever-after or two ships passing in the night? If one thing’s for sure, it’s that we are kept on our toes.

‘Seating Plan‘ has finished its Fringe run