In Scott Graham and Steven Hoggett's beautifully choreographed production, today and yesterday are in a constant pas de deux with each other. However, their marriage survives his addictive tendencies, temptations of infidelity on both sides, and an inability to have children that affects them both profoundly but manifests in different ways. But it is also admirably clear-eyed about the ups and downs of a happy, childless marriage: the little betrayals, the thoughtless chatters of friends, the need to sometimes escape another person even if you love them, the lack of legacy, the terrible fear of turning into one of those couples "facing one another over a cooling cup of coffee with nothing left to say". Projecting the image reminded the audience of this conversation, and added to the sense of loss and grief that both William and the audience felt when Maggie died. Join Frantic Assembly Associate Simon Pittman as he leads you through a physical creative task inspired by the rehearsal process for our production of Lovesong.

What we loved about those was the hero's grand romantic gesture that risked being missed or misunderstood by the object of his love. Although subtle, this technique added depth to their characterisation, therefore making their characters even more believable for the audience. Often when both couples appeared in the same scene together, the young couple were lit in a soft, warm coloured lighting whilst the old couple were often left in darkness. Cox is equally pitch perfect as the old man grown irascible, haunted by a sense of loss except for one thing, the most important thing, his boundless love for Maggie. A crescendo of classical music faded into the scene as she tried to walk in her old shoes with difficulty.One of these moments was when William went to the fridge to drink for the first time during an argument with Margaret, and his older self shut the fridge door behind him.

Both men wore brown button down shirts, whilst in one of the scenes Maggie is seen wearing a scarf of the same blue colour as the dress Margaret was wearing in the previous scene. Despite maintaining their individual personality traits, the relationship of the couple seemed to change in many ways as they grew older. An elderly man dances with the memory of his young wife; a young man makes love to the woman his new wife will eventually become. You can change your choices at any time by visiting Cookie preferences, as described in the Cookie notice. However, the differentiating factor in their voices was that while the volume of Margaret’s voice fluctuated depending on the situation, Maggie’s voice was much louder the majority of the time.This subtle factor bared significance, as it showed Maggie’s hearing deteriorating as she became older. The production stayed with me for a long time after I had seen it, as for me it illustrated the fragility of life and relationships, and the naturalistic, raw emotional response to separation through death. The use of levels in this scene aided the visual impact; as their future selves were sat directly behind them. Abi Morgan’s love story time-warps us through the 40 years’ marriage of Maggie (Siân Phillips) and Billy (Sam Cox).

This costume coordination allowed for Bill to recognise that at times he saw the younger Margaret buried beneath Maggie’s ageing appearance and deteriorating health; the audience see this when the older Bill dances with the memory of his young wife. Instead, they used much more subtle features to make it clear to the audience that they were the same character.This scene created a mellow atmosphere amongst the audience and also carried a sense of dramatic irony, as the young couple discussed their plans for what their lives would be like in future. As they enter the final week of her life, the house becomes full with memories of their marriage and their desperation to conceive a child. The kitchen and bedroom of Maggie and Billy's house, where the walls were never scribbled on by longed-for children, are stalked by the ghosts of their younger selves: the smooth-skinned, radiant Margaret (Leanne Rowe) and William (Edward Bennett). This larger space made the cross-cutting techniques more effective and gave the audience a feeling of looking in on the scenes. Throughout the performance I thought of Maggie and William as a unit, and so when Maggie died it felt as though William was left at a loose end and appeared vulnerable without Maggie; the sorrowful atmosphere could’ve easily accounted for the death of both characters.

is as tender as the bruised peaches that fall to the ground in the garden of the elderly couple's US home. Lovesong plays at the Drum Theatre Plymouth 30th September to 15 October 2011, then opens in Washington DC in Autumn 2011 followed by a run at Sheffield Crucible from 19th October. Wheelchair spaces and their adjacent seats for accompanying guests are not available to book online. Past and present literally intertwine as the older and younger couples move around each other across the stage. This created a sorrowful ambiance, as it proved hard to watch a couple who were once so passionate and full of adoration for each another now have nothing left to say to one another.Lovesong is the story of one couple, told from two different points in their lives: as young lovers in their twenties and as worldly companions looking back on their relationship from old age. An example of this was when a low level, soft music played in the background and the young couple were lit in a soft spotlight that contrasted against the rest of the blacked-out stage (to represent the night time).