Even in Another Time

Broadly influenced by the anniversary of Stonewall, this series of snapshots questions how far LGBT experience has come in the last forty years.

Delightfully, they mostly avoid broad political commentary. A mother shares a fish supper with her lesbian daughter: an awkward date is transformed into a recognisable negotiation between disappointment and pride. Two women explain their alienation from the scene, before heading to the dance floor. The final, least effective, sequence pits Aphrodite against Sappho.

The first two conversations have flashes of the wit displayed by Martin O’Connor in his monologues, but their focus on the challenges of sexuality and the desire to belong give them a different energy: pregnant pauses, embarrassment and justifications make this a comedy of misunderstanding. Yet all of the characters are determined, and their hope finally defeats their anguish.

Miller has a sharp eye for detail and a compassionate humour, and her ability to capture the intricacies of casual conversation and interior monologues is superb. Unfortunately, the seduction of Sappho by Aphrodite is less precise: the monologue against Christian oppression is clumsy, and neither Greek personality is rounded. Since this is the most overtly political, it is a shame that a nuanced engagement with both classical sexuality and Christian homophobia was absent. It reduces a complex argument down to a battle for moral supremacy, something that the first scenes refuse to do.

Nevertheless, this is a strong directorial debut, revealing a writer with a good ear for spoken language and a subtle sense of conflict and difference. When Glasgay! supports new artists like this, it moves forward both debates around sexuality and the possibilities of theatre.