Devil in the Detail

Toby Wilsher
MetaMorpho Theatre Company
Zoo Sanctuary

Devil in the Detail, written and directed by Toby Wilsher, the co-founder of Trestle Theatre, is loosely based on the play Box and Cox.

It's a splendid black comedy about greed and deceit played by actors in beautifully created full masks that perfectly capture the characters of the actors.

In a seedy run-down part of town a devious landlady and her vivacious daughter rent out a room to two men at the same time. One works days and the other nights. The men must be kept apart and the rooms are refurbished twice a day.

One of them is swindling his boss from the money he earns in drug dealing that he hides in an air vent. The other keeps a pet rattlesnake in a tank under his bed feeding it mice.

At first all goes well and the hilarious way the men were kept apart was reminiscent of a Brian Rix farce, with superb comic timing and impressive comic invention.

However disaster strikes when the two men finally meet and what follows is a maelstrom of manic riotous tomfoolery. It includes poisoning, shootings, snakebites, and attempted suicide - truly farcical and tremendously funny.

This is an exhilarating roller coaster ride of a comedy that should certainly be on your must-see list.

Reviewer: Robin Strapp

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