Little Lark of London

“Train, port, city, sea”

Have you ever gotten off at the wrong train station? Have you taken refuge in a local pub, waiting for the next train to come? Have said pub’s owners ever given you an offer you can’t refuse, say, killing a man for £100,000? This is what one woman faces when she finds herself in a mysterious town in Port City Signature. The play, written by Nathaniel Brimmer-Beller, who directs along with Phoebe Rowell John, is a thriller inspired by the likes of Hitchcock and the Coen brothers. 

As soon as you step into the Hope Theatre, you are immersed in the world of Port City Signature. Designer Hannah Williams has done a fantastic job of bringing the audience into the world of the coastal pub, with green and blue paint and a net hanging from the ceiling. Once everyone has taken their seats, our first character arrives – Regular, played by Paddy Echlin. We sit in silence with Regular for what feels like several minutes as he reads his book before someone bursts into the pub, appropriately named Newcomer (Meg Clarke). 

The social standoff between Regular and Newcomer is quite fun, and we are soon introduced to another character, Lady (Katherine Lea), who at first appears to be Regular’s partner but then quickly establishes herself as a force of her own. Lea has strong chemistry with both Echlin and Clarke, making for some absolutely delightful scenes between the three. After some fun scenes of banter, Regular and Lady reveal their plan to Newcomer – they want her to kill a villainous man and, in return, she will receive £100,000 and be able to get on the next train out of the city with no questions asked. 

How villainous is this person, the one they call Sheriff? This is the question Newcomer asks, to which Lady responds with, “Who’s the worst man you’ve ever met in  your life?” While he is only on stage for a small amount of time, David Carter certainly leaves an impression as Sheriff, providing some of the only genuinely tense moments in the show. Though I understand keeping the mystery alive by not having him appear for long, I would have liked to see more of Sheriff and see how he interacts with all three of the other characters. 

One of the most interesting aspects of Port City Signature is the mysteries that it keeps, some of which remain unanswered. Secrets seem to be a form of currency in the city where we never learn anyone’s name. Even those who are mentioned are referred to simply by their occupation, like Farmer. Newcomer asks many questions throughout the show and very rarely receives a straight answer, including simple questions like, “Where is here, exactly?”

Unfortunately, where the show struggles is in its pacing, as it easily could have been an hour-long show. There are quite a few moments of purposeful silence throughout the show that go on for longer than needed for the effect they intend to create. One of these is one that makes it seem like the show is over, including a near-blackout, but then there are still several scenes to go as the actors return to the stage and continue. There are also some awkward moments when the characters are on the phone, as it has been placed behind the audience towards the tech booth, forcing the actors to walk through the audience to have one-way phone conversations. Some choices made by Brimmer-Beller were also frustrating to watch, but I will not go into them as they contain major spoilers. 

Ultimately, Port City Signature is a play that pays tribute to the genre of noir and has some solid performances but struggles to really capture the mysteries and thrills that could have been provided by the plot. 

Port City Signature runs from 26 September to 14 October at the Hope Theatre. For more information and to purchase tickets, click here.

Photo Credit: Nathaniel Brimmer-Beller