Pub theatre meets movie magic in We’ll Always Have Paris, an ode to old Hollywood romance that whisks its audience away on a cinematic experience to laugh, cry, and consider the effort it takes to feel whole when we are fundamentally missing
We’ll Always Have Paris is an exceptional piece of pub theatre that brings Hollywood romance to life onstage. It is an anti-rom-com that takes big production swings, including use of complex projections and set pieces, that are beautifully executed to enhance the equally wonderful dialogue and performances.
40-something year old Ginny is struggling through life following the loss of her fiance, Jerry. It has been roughly a year since Jerry’s passing and Ginny has entered a new, unspoken phase of grief. Though she rejects Kübler-Ross’s attempt to categorise the interminable and illogical experience into something linear, she nevertheless finds herself in the particular phase of grief where her pain remains though the rest of the world has decided it’s time to move on.
Since time refuses to stop, Ginny tries to keep up. Her mother never fails to remind her that she is, after all, in a race against a biological clock; Facebook never fails to remind her that her peers’ lives are undoubtedly better. Ginny goes through the motions, putting in alternating shifts at her poorly-paid cinema job and on Tinder. As figures from her past reappear and figures from her present disappear, Ginny must find her way back to herself while accepting that herself is forever changed.
The plot of We’ll Always Have Paris is not high-concept, but the play is exquisite. Paul Kalburgi’s script is as heartbreaking as it is heartwarming. Like life and romance, it is profoundly bittersweet. We’ll Always Have Paris is proof that a simple story, with enough authenticity, can ask questions as grand as: what is permanence? What remains after love and loss?
Miranda Colmans is devastatingly honest and laugh-out-loud funny as the sardonic, self-deprecating though self-aware, if slightly dysfunctional, Ginny. Cyril Blake and Eliza Williams support Colmans as a rotating cast of secondary characters that include Ginny’s mother, former classmate, and a long-list of misguided dating app matches. Blake and Williams make their exceedingly difficult jobs look easy and together demonstrate what subtle vocal and physical choices can do in the hands of truly talented performers to bring fully-realised and recognisable characters to life in seconds.
The cinematic nature of the play is a beautiful marriage of style and substance. We’ll Always Have Paris is itself an ode to the great romances of the silver screen. Classic love stories and anti-love stories like Breakfast at Tiffany’s, La La Land, and, of course, Casablanca are referenced, quoted, and even screened in conversation with Ginny’s life.
We’ll Always Have Paris is expertly-directed by Kay Brattan. Genuinely innovative transitions transform the small stage from the aisles of Ikea to the streets of Paris and back with an ease that feels impossible off-screen.
The production’s tiny flaws are few and far between. The plot relies slightly on the unbelievable premise that most people in Paris are not entirely fluent in English. Some scenes feel too short or thin to justify the time and energy of the preceding set change. Nonetheless, the sheer magic of the experience means any qualms are easy to ignore.
We’ll Always Have Paris is independent theatre at its best. From script to cast to tech to production design, it is a feat of onstage storytelling that pushes boundaries while maintaining the unique intimacy of pub theatre. Audiences should be sure to see the production while it’s on at White Bear Theatre through 3rd October. Tickets and more information are available at: https://www.whitebeartheatre.