This dark comedy, which deals with five old school friends reuniting unexpectedly, benefits from the chemistry between the ensemble cast who all bounce off each other throughout the various exchanges. The script adeptly covers a wide tonal range, from hashing out old rivalries to darkly comic jokes whilst also allowing for more philosophical musings on the disappointments of growing older and death. The cast match these tonal shifts beat by beat, coming across well as old friends who have grown up together. The young actor who plays the main character JD is especially impressive, as he handles both comedic and dramatic moments equally, making his character appear fully rounded.

The use of dark humour is impressively handled, with the use of a dead body as well as the subjects of rape and racism being particularly successful as funny subjects when they could have easily served to just offend the audience. What helps in this inclusion is that the tackling of this content makes it seem like they are natural topics of conversation between the characters in the play – something that is often lost in so-called ‘edgy’ comedic works.

However, the more dramatic moments, such as JD’s musing on the groups lost idealism of their past and his confession off love for one of the women, also are effectively written, providing a nice contrast to the humour without dramatically shifting the tone. Similarly, the use of a dead body and the discussions between the group as to what to do with it could have resulted in sub – Shallow Grave – esque dark comedy with various attempts made to dispose of it. However, it is to the credit of the script that this doesn’t happen, with the ensemble responses being reassuringly more realistic.

The overall effect of the writing creates the impression of being a fly on the wall watching a real group of old school acquaintances meet up. As a result, The Mort Hoose works as an impressively written and performed play that deftly mixes the realistic with the theatrical.

The Mort Hoose has finished its run