The Approach (Flight Path Theatre) ★★★

Written by Mark O’Rowe. Flight Path Theatre. 16 Aug – 2 Sep, 2023.

Mark O’Rowe’s The Approach became something of a Covid lock down hit when it was streamed live from Dublin. A circular tale of three women, having three conversations that mimic and loop around each other to slowly reveal the inner lives of each. The original production, directed by O’Rowe himself, was a sharp and funny hour-long character study that reportedly worked just as well on a laptop screen as it did live. It’s now being staged at Flight Path Theatre with three terrific actresses Linda Nicholls-Gidley, Lindsey Chapman and Sarah Jane Starr.

There is little action in The Approach, almost completely devoid of physical movement or props. The staging is simply a table with two chairs and some judiciously placed mirrors on the walls, the focus is solely on the performances. As the three Irish women Anna, Cora and Denise talk, in differently paired conversations, the audience begins to unravel the interwoven relationships, history and resentments lurking underneath the seemingly everyday chat.

It’s in the subtleties that The Approach really delivers. The cadence and rhythm of speech, the micro-expressions that tell the truth when the actual words are seemingly banal. It’s in the inconsistencies of repeated stories and the little white lies that the big shifts happen. O’Rowe can craft dialogue that feels authentic while also bringing out everyday comedy from the subjects and this cast know how to deliver it without forcing the matter. They’re each wonderfully human performances. 

However by the 50 minute mark (of this 70ish minute play) I was starting to feel frustrated by how static it was. What started off as an interesting ‘hang out’ with these all-too-realistic characters was starting to drag. While the humour kept me laughing and the revelations kept me engaged, the gaps between these moments started to feel elongated. I chalk it up to pacing (running around 10 minutes longer than the original seems to suggest there is some air in the delivery that can be let out – the kind of change that will naturally happen over the course of the run), and to the minimal staging.

O’Rowe’s script is multilayered and rewarding, and the cast, under the direction of Deborah Jones, keep it flowing. As a showcase for Nicholls-Gidley, Chapman and Starr, The Approach succeeds admirably, delivering funny, flawed women that feel real in every sense.