Even in the rehearsal room, you can see how the moods alter in The Engagement, James Alexander Allen’s tale of a relationship ripped apart by addiction. Take a look, then book your tickets.
The Experimentorium show runs at the Bread & Roses Theatre from 26 to 30 November 2019.
Inevitably, a relationship begins promisingly, almost perfectly. It moves fast, but what’s wrong with that if you’re happy?
The Engagement tells the true story of how alcoholism tears apart a couple and their family. Briefly, Gerri and John are happy together but as the effects of Gerri’s addiction become overwhelming, even the intervention of family, in the form of Gerri’s stepsister, Luanne, cannot change the inevitable. The engagement ends, leaving everything impossible to finish.
Lene Kqiku leads the cast as Gerri, with Velenezia Spearpoint, who is also Artistic Director of the Bread & Roses as Luanne and Experimentorium Productions’ co-founder Jonathan Parr as John. The production is directed by Parr’s Experimentorium co-founder Laura Dorn.
Based on the true story of Wayne Liversidge, who has worked with playwright and screenwriter Allen to bring it to the stage, The Engagement ran at Brighton’s Rialto in 2018 following a positive response to an earlier rehearsed reading. On that performance, FringeGuru said, in their four-star review, “Allen should be applauded for tackling issues often taboo in polite society.”
The Engagement rehearsal gallery
