Do not be fooled by the name: My Romantic History is anything but. A tale of boy and girl who meet and get entangled in an office romance is the spikiest bit of writing and performance I’ve seen in some time.
DC Jackson’s play is fresh from the Edinburgh Festival and now showing at The Studio Theatre in Sheffield. A three-person show with a genius cardboard-box set, My Romantic History is comedy gold. For starters, it’s got three of my favourite things: observation about the sexes, swearing in Celtic accents (Scottish in this case) and one-liners that actually make you laugh out loud.
Tom meets Amy in an average Scottish office. They flirt, drunkenly cop off and find themselves accidentally embroiled in a relationship. Played pitch-perfectly by Iain Robertson and Alison O’Donnell, they splice dialogue with with knowing monologues to high dramatic effect. The chemistry’s convincing and the comedy razor-sharp. Rosalind Sydney plays a host of other supporting roles, male and female, but none so funny as the passive aggressive colleague Sasha everyone loves to hate.
Masterfully directed by Lyndsey Turner, My Romantic History captures the awkardness of getting to know someone and the excitement of the chase that’s followed swiftly by disappointment and irritation. What gets in the way of Tom and Amy’s hearts soaring is the fact neither is able to get over the heartbreak wreaked by their first loves. Circumstances conspire to drag them into adulthood, making this a play about growing up as well as the star-crossedness of the sexes.
I cannot tell you how much I think you should go see this play. It’s on till Saturday 2 October: get booked in now!
Book tickets online or call the box office on 0114 249 6000.
Tickets: £10.00 – £15.00
Studio Theatre, Sheffield
Running time: 90 minutes (no interval)