My Romantic History at Tron Theatre, Glasgow Review
Photo: Mihaela Bodlovic
Written by Kerry for Theatre and Tonic
Disclaimer: Gifted tickets in exchange for an honest review. All views are our own
D.C. Jackson’s My Romantic History, directed by Johnny McKnight for Tron Theatre, delves into the office “romance” of Tom and Amy through dual narration. Advertised as a romantic comedy of sorts, the show pushes with the comedic elements, and instead of giving its audience a couple it can root for, it gives a more realistic depiction of dating beyond your twenties.
The narrative of the show does have its advantage in having a dialogue with the audience, almost as if we are inside the heads of Amy and Tom. It creates clear characterisations without having to do too much extra work on top of the dominant relationship arc. There do seem to be a few times where the freaking out goes on a little too much, a little too close together, almost losing its comedic value by its overuse. The quieter moments are what seem to shine; we see how the two actually do care for each other, even if there is a mounting list of things they despise, the negativity around relationships becoming something that only seems to be more substantial in recent works. Lewis Watson and Rebecca Wilkie both bring strong comedic stature to the lovable but also hateable Tom and Amy, as well as Calvin and Alison, who act almost as their alter egos. But I do have to admit that Julie Wilson Nimmo has to be the standout of the piece, portraying Sasha with an indistinguishable accent and being able to jump between minor characters with ease that you forget it's even the same woman.
Props have to be given to Kenny Miller’s Lite Brite style backdrop, which did a seamless job of moving the audience between locations, as well as the emotional weight carried by Amy and Tom. I do think it would have been nice to have a specified lighting setup for flashbacks, more for the sake of continuity and to help easily distinguish between characters, since the trio plays a multitude throughout. Miller’s choice to put the characters in light blue in the moment just seemed like it was more to present a cohesive colour scheme, but looking into how colours evoke emotions whilst writing this review revealed the potentially interesting reasoning. Light blue has connotations of trust, something which Amy and Tom don’t seem to share as a couple, but also as individuals, having both cheated in past relationships. We can’t even truly trust them as narrators, since we are being told the story from their perspectives, and it is common for people to wear the victim t-shirt when telling stories. By using these colours, Miller is bringing in a false sense of security between the characters and the audience, really in the same way that Amy and Tom’s relationship progresses for the majority of the piece.
As the show progresses, we can see their sides of the story unfold and how certain things weren’t as they remembered, like Calvin’s tattoo of Amy’s name being small on his arm instead of massive on his back.
My Romantic History is a fast-paced, quick-witted, easy watch for anyone who enjoyed the rom-com boom of the late nineties and early noughties, finding its feet in the laughs of the script, the cast bounce off each other with effortless flair in thanks to McKnight’s direction.
★★★★