Tasha Dowd’s distinguished new play Tell Me How It Ends follows the relationship of Marc, one of the countless gay men afflicted with HIV and AIDS in the late 1980s, and Aster, one of the band of female volunteers who stood by them as part of a buddy programme.
Amidst the culture of fear, the flames of which were fanned by the then government’s ill-judged ‘awareness’ campaign, many AIDS sufferers were shunned and ostracised by their families and friends, and found themselves relying on these volunteers for any form of real human contact or emotional support.
Not everyone was wholeheartedly enthusiastic about making friends with a volunteering stranger when they were at their most vulnerable, and one such reluctant participant is Marc, a native of Birmingham who came to Liverpool to create a new identity and future, only to be cruelly robbed of it. Faced with the terminally perky and enthusiastic Aster, whose lilting Welsh voice sometimes seems impossible to switch off, he is less than impressed and rebels against the intrusion into his tightly guarded emotional bubble.
All of the charm and wit of Dowd’s impressively upbeat play come from the sparky exchanges between this pair in their frosty beginnings, and the gradual thawing, détente and growing affection that develops over its 70 minute span.
Luke Sookdeo (in a very strong professional stage debut) and Emmy Stonelake bounce off each other with great flair, and director Gitika Buttoo keeps the dialogue and movement flowing well, although just occasionally audibility suffers with the rapid delivery. Designer Katie Scott’s set offers us two apartments and a hospital bed on split levels, as well as leaving space for asides to the audience and the occasional night out, outside the claustrophobic confines of the main action.
Dowd’s writing has an honesty and realism to it that is both instantly recognisable to those who actually do remember living through these times, and makes a strong connection with anyone too young to have firsthand experience. It also has a richness and warmth to the character development that makes us want to invest in their stories.
Aster has an unrestrainable habit of giving away the endings of films and books. In the late ‘80s and early 90’s when this piece is set, Marc’s story inevitably has an all too predictable ending, but the takeaway message is that the bigger story doesn’t have an end at all. As one battle closes, Aster reflects that the war is not over yet. In an epilogue-like soliloquy, she rails at the establishment: “It’s the same fight with a new name” she says, “A new cost if we cannot put in the effort.”
Tell Me How It Ends plays at the Everyman Theatre until 22nd June.
Luke Sookdeo as Marc & Emmy Stonelake as Aster © Andrew AB Photography
Star Rating 4½ stars
This review was originally written for publication by Good News Liverpool
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