The sisters in A Word for Mother

HIGHGATE writer-actor Tim McArthur foregrounds female relationships in his play about three sisters grieving the loss of their mother.

In A Word for Mother, Faith, Hope and Charity are reunited by the unexpected death of their “Mummy”, Pru  (Louise Gold). When they meet at the family home, tensions are high.

Through a series of flashbacks, each sister recalls a particular conversation they had with Pru and reflects on what she meant to them. We learn how an earlier betrayal has caused a rift in the family.

Hope (Melaina Pecorini) is the youngest, her late father Trevor was Pru’s second husband. Her half-sister, Faith (Heather Johnson), mother of twin boys, is dealing with the fallout out from her broken marriage. Charity (Abigail Moore), the eldest, is wedded to her work as a children’s lawyer.

Sarah Redmond’s direction is occasionally heavy-handed – there’s too much stage business, an over-reliance on props and some odd lighting choices; inevitably this impacts the performances and can be distracting.

McArthur writes perceptively about the disorienting world of grief, but the production might have benefited from less intensity in the first half. Once the actors settle into their roles, the shorter second half proves genuinely moving.

Until May 26
upstairsatthegatehouse.com/