Review: 4000 Days at the Park Theatre

4000 Days
Park Theatre
Reviewed on Friday 22nd January 2016
★★

The concept behind Peter Quilter's new play 4000 Days is very powerful; whilst Michael lies in a coma, his stressed boyfriend and disapproving mother wait by his side at each other's throats. After regaining consciousness, it becomes clear Michael is suffering from memory loss and is left piecing together the last decade of his life. 

On paper this sounds like a brilliant idea for a play, but somewhere along the line something hasn't quite worked. The three characters - played by Alistair McGowan, Maggie Ollerenshaw and Daniel Weyman - all feel two dimensional. Moderately amusing one-liners paved way for some gentle chuckles whist the more tender moments lacked heart and genuine sincerity.

I understand the decision not to include a medical professional as a fourth character; however, some moments - such as when Michael's mother took it upon herself to test the extent of her son's memory loss - felt too contrived. Matt Aston's production is paced well; the running time didn't drag whilst scenes are broken up nicely. 

There are certainly glimmers of hope; during the first ten minutes I thought I was about to be drawn into an intense and thought provoking drama, but ultimately  I was left underwhelmed. 

Reviewed by Andrew Tomlins (Editor)

4000 Days runs at the Park Theatre until 13th February 2016.
Please visit www.parktheatre.co.uk for further information and tickets.

Photo Credit: Rory Lindsay

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