The play's the thing

I've been out to one of my favourite theatres tonight to see an adaptation of Samuel Beckett's short story First Love (written in 1946 but not published until 1973) with my friends Mel, Helen and Amanda.

Merseyside Left Theatre emerged in the 1930s and became Merseyside Unity Theatre in 1944 - part of a much wider Unity Theatre movement which aimed to make theatre accessible to ordinary people and to use it as a means of addressing progressive political ideas.

By the mid-80s Merseyside Unity Theatre had leased a former synagogue on Hope Place and transformed it into a theatre. The theatre group itself disbanded in the 80s but the building and much of the original ethos lives on as 'unitytheatre' which continues to stage cutting-edge and experimental theatre, dance and comedy.

The play - a tragi-comedy of sorts - concerns a man who becomes homeless following the death of his father, is offered 'salvation' by a woman but walks out on her as she gives birth to a child which may or may not be his.

It was performed, brilliantly, by Conor Lovett of the Gare St Lazare Players from Cork and is part of Liverpool's Irish Festival.

Here are some theatre-goers gathering in the foyer, snapped from the upstairs bar.

Off to bed now but will try to catch up with comments tomorrow...