Note: This review is based on a preview performance of the show.
First Time Last Time, written and directed by Scott Sharplin, tells the story of Ben and Airlea, and their 15 or so years together (the math, we are told, is fuzzy.)
While Sharplin's notes indicate this is a play about "non-traditional relationships" what strikes me is just how traditional their relationship is. Which is not to say it is without interest.
The story is a twist on a standard: boy-with-goals Ben meets goth-chick LARPer Airlea. The twist comes in that neither one (they protest) is looking for a relationship, so they agree to a one night stand. That turns into two, three, and then years of nights. So long as it stays fresh, they state, each time counts as the first.
Ben is played with earnest eagerness by co-producer Wesley J. Colford. Meanwhile, Jenna Lahey gives Airlea some surprising turns of emotional depth.
The preview performance began a bit stilted, not helped by a slightly awkward frame narrative that lands well but doesn't have a strong take off. However, the two actors, and the script itself, find their sea-legs in the second act when the lies begin and the subject turns (as it must inevitably do) to babies. This includes a delicious moment in which Airlea speaks to us about Ben's growing obsession with babies, while being pelted by an increasingly dense shower of baby toys. It is in this act, as well, that the set, a pile of storage boxes, (designer uncredited in the program) earns its keep.
I left this production feeling like the script could be tighter. Each scene contained good moments, and the characters invited me to care. However, my efforts were regularly blocked as forward thrust of the scenes would stall and circle before moving onward. This was not helped by repeated references in the script to how the middle of a story is full of blur. I would suggest that this script could be pulled in to a single act to keep the scenes fresh and showcase better the story and relationship arc.
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| Wesley J. Colford and Jenna Lahey as Ben and Airlea Photo Credit: Chris Walzak |
This is, as the poster might suggest, a comedy, and the jokes are certainly there. They did not land as strongly as they could have done at the preview I attended, but I suspect that both Colford and Lahey will hit the comic marks more easily after opening and during the run. A Toronto crowd on a Wednesday night is a tough room.
Recommendation: An enjoyable night.
First Time Last Time runs to June 21st, 2015
At Theatre Passe Muraille Backspace, 16 Ryerson Ave
General Admission: $20
Student/Youth/Artworker Price: $15
Sundays: PWYC
Tickets can be purchase online at http://passemuraille.ca
Or by phone at: (416) 504-7529