Reunion
Family, eh? Can’t live with ‘em, can’t live without ‘em. Relatives reuniting at a big event, where tensions bubble up and burst over, is a set-up theatre-goers know well. TS Eliot set the blueprint with The Family Reunion; right now, in central London, the West End transfer of Beth Steel’s Till the Stars Come Down shows a similarly hectic get-together with distressing consequences.
In Mark Rowe’s one-act comedy-drama Reunion – the critical darling of the Galway International Arts Festival, where it premiered in 2024 – those recognisable beats are all there. On a little island off the Irish coast, a family are getting together; to share a ‘traditional Irish meal’ (including or not including courgettes, depending who you ask) and raise a glass in honour of late patriarch Seán. Yet as old wounds are bared against a backdrop of whipping wind and choppy waters, it becomes clear that there’s a reason this family doesn’t come together all that much.
This genre calls for explosive arguments, lightning-fast banter, and shocking revelations. Under Rowe’s direction, Reunion is a more grounded affair. The dialogue, while pacy, doesn’t ricochet across the Scandi-inspired home at speed, and the emotional peaks are more shouts than guttural screams. Laughter is the priority here, making for an enjoyable drama – even if the emotional depths feel somewhat untapped.
Set to Aoife Kavanagh’s soundtrack of crashing waves and anxious drums, the family assemble, all stylishly clad in a muted...