Review of Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York)
Review of Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York) by Jim Barne and Kit Buchan
British guy Dougal arrives in New York to attend the wedding of his father, a man he’s never actually met. Eternal optimist Dougal is looking forward to connecting with a whole new side of his family and to embracing the sights, sounds and culture of New York City. Lumbered with escorting him to his hotel is Robin, sister of the bride, a down-in-the-mouth coffee waitress who has long since stopped seeing the joy in her native city.
Even before these two great characters arrived on stage, I was impressed by the set: two towering piles of grey plastic suitcases. Not only did they suggest an airport or railway station and thus foreshadow a character in transit, they also evoked the New York skyline. An equally strong first impression was generated by seeing at the side of the stage an actual live band. It was refreshing to hear talented musicians in the flesh and not on a soundtrack.
When the show started, we saw just how versatile the set was. The suitcases were built on a turntable which simulated the airport baggage reclaim, from where Dougal embarked on his NYC odyssey. From then on, the set would revolve at key moments to depict the characters crossing back and forth across the city.
And many of those suitcases lived double lives, converting to, among other things, a wardrobe, a bed, a hotel drinks fridge, a coffee bar and even a Chinese restaurant.
Musical interludes were tuneful, and song lyrics catchy as well as meaningful. Dujonna Gift as Robin and Sam Tutty as Dougal were terrific singers. Particularly noteworthy were Dujonna’s vocal gymnastics when Robin did a light-hearted take-off of Eartha Kitt’s ‘Santa Baby’.
Both were also superb actors. Dujonna gave a nuanced performance as Robin: cynical and deadpan but also likeable and vulnerable. And as for Sam as the enthusiastic tourist, my family saw something very unexpected in his portrayal of Dougal. And here’s why:
My son and his wife first saw the theatre billboards while they were in the process of carrying my husband's birthday cake across London. (My daughter-in-law is cordon bleu pastry chef.) They chuckled and said they'd have to see the aptly titled production.
When they did see it, they discovered even more parallels with themselves. Like Dougal the Brit, excited to be in New York for the first time and wanting Robin the native New Yorker to show him the sights, my British son displayed similar exuberance when his American wife took him to her native Chicago for the first time.
But the similarities didn’t end there. Dougal was uncannily like my son in personality. Not only are both speakers of conversational German, they share an encyclopaedic knowledge of popular movies and see the USA through references to Home Alone. Sam Tutty even had my son’s physicality and body language. When my son and daughter-in-law saw the show, they immediately recognised my son in Dougal, as did I when I saw the show later. When I caught up with my son afterwards, I was spotting mannerisms that I'd just seen on stage. It felt surreal and certainly put the ‘strange’ in Two Strangers.
All in all, a memorable night, topped off by welcoming front-of-house staff and a beautiful auditorium. Thank you, Criterion Theatre and all creatives involved, for a wonderful evening of entertainment.
(Read my review of Red Pitch at @sohoplace theatre here.)