Moving In

Reviewed by Jennifer Walton

The vibe is deeply unsettling, but in a good way.

We open on a seemingly happy young couple moving in together after dating for only three months. Sarah (Jenson Porter) is sunny and supportive, and James (Brett Houghton) is awkward and aloof. He wears a Future is Female t-shirt that belongs to Sarah. How cute - they are already swapping clothes, but is this who they actually are, or is it just performative feminism? We learn that the night before, Sarah has finally introduced James to her friends, and it didn’t go as well as she'd hoped. When Sarah's new friend Patrice (Hannah Whitmore) drops in to return Sarah’s scarf from the night before, we discover there is more to James than Sarah knows. In fact, these two don’t really know each other at all. 

Brilliantly written and directed by Elias Campbell, this play poses questions that don’t get wrapped up in a bow with easy answers. Campbell never tells us the whole story, and it creates a sense of quiet unease that builds to a discomforting crescendo when the veil finally drops. Can Sarah actually trust the man she’s just moved in with? I’ve got some big feelings about this, but I’ll let you decide. 

Jenson Porter delivers a powerful, nuanced performance as the supportive at-all-costs girlfriend, Sarah. Brett Houghton plays the subtext of James with chilling precision. Hannah Whitmore, as the new friend, plays Patrice with maddening trepidation that adds to the tautness of this psychological drama. A few small quibbles - volume sometimes gets traded for intimacy, and every line counts in this play, and there should be a content warning for discussions of suicide. 

If you love in-depth post-theatre discussions, this is the perfect show to see and will leave you feeling deeply unsettled in the best kind of way. 

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Event Details

Age Suitability: Mature (ages 18+)

Genre: Theatre—Drama

Run Time: 60 mins

Playwright

Elias Campbell

Director

Elias Campbell

Warnings

Sexual Content, Coarse Language