I had half hoped that Trash would live up to its name; it would serve to validate the use of all the puns I had been turning over in my head on the way to the Rosemary Branch Theatre. However, Director Andrew Fielding-Day’s exploration of death, sisterhood and abuse manages to keep Trash on the keep pile (sorry).

The play begins in media res in the depths of a council rubbish dump alongside sisters Diane (Emma Shenkman) and Becky (Georgina Philipps). Initially we’re clueless as to who these formally dressed women are, what their relation to each other is, and most importantly why they have found themselves rootling through dusty black bin liners. Positioned around Leah Sams’ imposing and effective monument of garbage, the story gradually unfolds: Diane and Becky, having just raced from the crematorium, are searching for Becky’s discarded letter containing her mother’s last words to her.

While the women remain physically in the same place throughout the play, we are mentally guided through a history of Becky’s drug addiction, childhood abuse and rejection- all of which steadily bubbles to the surface over two acts of unadulterated catharsis.

Arthur M. Jolly’s script is strong on its metaphors: the trash itself has a manifold of interpretations; it doubles for Diane’s sense of rejection, while Becky recognises the reality of her own life ruined by heroin addiction reflected back at her amongst the refuse. Their relentless search through piles of filth acts as a mirror of their search through the past wasted years of their life. Thus we are invited to wonder what this letter means: upon finding the letter will the sisters also retrieve their long lost relationship? However, there is very little progression once the initial themes were laid out; in fact occasionally I found myself wondering if I had seen certain dialogues before, as words such as ‘cockroach’ and ‘junkie’ were snarled for the umpteenth time.

Shenkman and Philipps worked effortlessly together. Philipps must certainly be commended on her London stage debut, as she convincingly affected a sense of awkwardness and guilt at her extended absence from the family. It was saddening to see her attempts at remorse brutally batted away by Shenkman. The pair certainly grappled with the task of portraying two psychologically damaged sisters well, and the occasional bursts of violence- although perhaps gratuitous at points- were often entertaining and helped provide a glimpse into a childhood moulded by mistreatment.

Their performances would have been improved if there had been greater variation in their tone and mood, as one can only assume that an extended dispute is never constantly vitriolic but has moments of both agitation and calm. As a result I found my patience wearing a little bit thin in Act II as the pair seemed to cover the same ground, in the same vein as Act I. Moreover, occasionally their words were lost which is frankly unforgivable in such a small venue.

Nevertheless, it was a successful debut for Indigo Iris Productions and I look forward to seeing what the future has in store for them.

Trash is playing at Rosemary Branch Theatre until the 19th of September. For more information and tickets, see the Rosemary Branch Theatre website.