Bubba and Luvvie, Kings Head Theatre

Theatre is often about simplicity, to convey the right sort of message, atmosphere or style. In Bubba and Luvvie at the Kings Head Theatre things aren’t quite so simple as ‘one man, one woman, one park bench’ as the publicity suggests. Instead the audience finds themselves caught up in a rather multi-layered duologue between ex-lovers, between murderer and witness, between the truth and freedom and any other opposite attraction that you can think of. Bubba and Luvvie is far from simple.

Angus Strachan’s play is a cross over between a duologue between characters and a ‘whodunit’, where the fantasy worlds of two strong minded characters meet with an explosive story that the whole play hinges on, a murder. Strachan’s text flows between a varying degree of elements that tilt and twist the plot in numerous directions before hitting the main plot once again. Tangents into the characters back life stories merge with the murder storyline to blur a clear distinction between the truth and the fantasy. At times there is a sense that all we really want to find out is the facts instead of trawling through fragments of memories conveyed by the characters, yet thankfully they are rebound off each other to allow the story to progress cleverly to hold our attention.

As the witness to the murder is Mia Soteriou playing ‘Luvvie’ – who for me steals the show in her wonderful portrayal of the brothel mistress mourning the loss of her brother, who fights against the love she has for the murderer. (That is of course if he is the murderer at all!) As the murderer is ‘Bubba’ played by Gerald McDermott who performs admirably within his role, giving a slightly comical approach to what could be perceived as a dark sinister character.

The thing about Bubba and Luvvie is the multi-layered aspect that the production has been given. Bubba and Luvvie are not just labelled as ‘witness’ and ‘murderer’ – they are lovers, ex-lovers, hate wielding humans – they are complex. Equally the staging of Bubba and Luvvie managers to be remarkably simple whilst creating a deep and complex atmosphere through the use of projections on the back wall. We see the repeated theme of the water, the sea – the waves riding up above the cast before falling once more. The moon too is used as a metaphor for darker secrets and emotions.

The lighting of Bubba and Luvvie reflects the projection work and is dark so that often we see the shadow of the actors more than them themselves. The direction of the piece is also sylistic that bounces between naturalism and the absurd. In fact, there are so many different elements being used within Bubba and Luvvie that it left me with a slight headache. How do you class a piece of theatre that never fully settles into a certain style? This isn’t a negative thing – on the contray it makes for an enjoyable evening not knowing what is to be imagined next.

My only fear is that it never settles for a moment to allow the audience some light relief of change. I longed for the story to be told, the actors to use the bench as a bench, and a portrayal of two realistic characters. This is more about directional choice and my own opinion, and who says that aposing views are bad? If anything Bubba and Luvvie should be celebrated for managing to crossover into so many different genres without imposing anything on the audience.

Thankfully both Soteriou and McDermott are brilliant within their roles, their lines escaping their mouths with such ease that the production slips past effortlessly. Strachan has not written an easy text to be performed but with actors like this they make light work of it – suddenly you can see the poeticness that Strachan has tried to achieve. Equally there is a real sense of balance between the two extremes of the characters personalities. They fling from sensitive, trapped and improsioned in their dilemmas, to the care-free, fun and sexually charged lovers. Soteriou donning a wig and sunglasses is every bit a seductive woman whilst McDermott’s firm grasp echos his former police life.

With two fine actors, Bubba and Luvvie is an enjoyable affair into a rather different take on how a play can be performed. The real question that is left with us is, does love tackle all things… even murder?

Bubba and Luvvie is performing at the Kings Head Theatre until the 8th August. You can book tickets through the Kings Head Theatre website.