View from the Green Room: I was a mistress for two and a half years to what’s-his-name
Playwright Nicola Spendlove
A wannabee bride with no name walks the aisle of the Gateway with veil and bouquet. And issues. This is Everygirl complete with her thoughts and complex emotions. Mounting the small stage with two chairs and a simple table as props, she’s in confessional mood and there’s no need for any vino. Because…the adrenaline of a dumped relationship keeps her going.
"I adiosed him by text just after watching a live-stream of his father’s funeral," says she in a gotcha moment of derision. The story of what brought her to this moment is the journey of the drama.
They met in a café where he mirrored everything she said about himself. Never a good sign. "Oh…you’re an author…wonderful…fascinating," says he to the girl who has a gig rating loos in restaurants. She’s flattered because he looks at her "nicely".
He’s got a clever line in seduction. "Social Distancing?" and a no shrug begins a hug and a chaste kiss. She feels "chosen" and he tells her that he "dreams of such a girl as her".
Five weeks later, they’re naked in his mother’s house on a rug and he wants to know about children. Three months in and they’re teaming up with his artist mother who paints landscapes. She now loves his mother, as well as his sycophantic self. And yet…a hint of a mother’s hesitation sets doubts in her mind. Spendlove’s nuanced script makes us uneasy about Mr Gentleman Caller.
However, when he turns up to announce "that’s my chic" at her book launch, she loves it. Her feeling of being the chosen one is even more intoxicating than sex or love.
Fifteen months in and she buys a small house from her own money. She has only one piece of furniture – a mattress – but it allows her to dream that this could be their forever home. Oddly…he frowns on the meagre surroundings and prefers to make love in comfortable hotels. Which she pays for.
She tires of building his confidence and takes her time about telling him she’s miscarried. She travels to Australia and can feel the distance between them. In a phone call, he tells her "he’s feeling pressured …betrayed". It’s time for this princess to exit the relationship, although it’s not without its doubts.
He tells her that nobody ever loves her like he does and then shows up with a new partner at the live-streamed funeral of his father, who finally manages to shuffle off this mortal coil.
She’s reflective now. She wants a life that was happening while waiting for another one. AND she’s determined to forget. "I was a mistress for two and a half years to what’s-his-name but, HEY, I do remember what I was and who exactly I am." Ava Manning gives a power-packed unhesitating performance in a 45-minute monologue that leaves the audience on the edge of their seats wondering what’s coming next. Feisty and incisive, Ava brought all the humanity required to this role and we had no doubt that she would find other worlds to conquer.
Well done Nicola Spendlove and Ava Manning on a great script and a powerful performance.
You just can’t beat good writing!
