Mustapha Matura's 'Meetings' is running at The Orange Tree Theatre, Richmond from 14 October to 11 November 2023.

The first major UK revival of the play, starring Martina Laird, Kevin Golding and Bethan Mary-James, follows the story of Hugh (Kevin Golding) and his wife Jean (Martina Laird) as Hugh becomes obsessed with the foods of his Trinidadian childhood and hires a cook, Elsa (Bethan Mary-James), to indulge his nostalgic passion.

The Orange Tree Theatre is a unique venue, in that the stage is a square, with seats surrounding the whole stage. 

This worked so incredibly well for this play, it made it feel as though the audience were watching the couple's life unfold through their kitchen windows.

Some moments of the play felt a little mundane and it took me a while to realise how symbolic this was to Hugh's frustration at how convenient, repetitive, capitalist and bland the couple's life had become as they both go from meeting to meeting every day. 

Whilst Jean was content, happy and excited by these features of life to Hugh it meant he was losing touch with his culture and identity. 

The way that Kevin Golding took up the entire stage and used his entire body to portray the love and excitement he had for Trinidad's traditional food and culture felt like he was injecting colour and excitement into the play. 

He brought humour and energy to the stage from the moment he first appeared. 

Bethan Mary-James' character, Elsa, who is hired by Hugh to cook the food that he craves matches his energy. She, too, uses her whole body and takes up space on the stage, dancing around the kitchen and listening to music. 

This matches Hugh and shows the bond that they share over their culture - Elsa is obviously traditional, wearing more traditional clothing and walking barefoot.

Jean however, makes small and gentle movements. She walks slowly into the kitchen, nibbles at her chicken and chips, slowly pours her coffee and other than one energetic conversation with Elsa she has very quiet conversations that lack the excitement that her husband and Elsa share. 

The lighting that was used was extremely effective and the use of music, specifically when Hugh was describing his experience at a traditional Shango ceremony was phenomenal.

One particularly interesting aspect was the use of smells, when Elsa is cooking and when Jean is smoking. The smell of the cigarettes contrasts with the smells of the food, again reminding the audience of the two worlds that are clashing against each other in one small kitchen. 

The play was both heartbreaking and joyful.

Book your tickets to meetings here.