Meera Syal stars in achingly beautiful new play A Tupperware of Ashes – review

We’re big fans of the Dorfman Theatre, the smallest space housed within London’s National Theatre complex. It often premieres interesting and exciting new works: we’ve enjoyed catching shows – many of which have gone on to find success on the West End – in this intimate setting.

A Tupperware of Ashes is one that we feel is destined for a bigger stage. Tanika Gupta’s new play focuses on the life of Queenie (Meera Syal), a Michelin-starred restaurateur, who has just been diagnosed in the early stages of Alzheimer’s. Over the course of the play we watch as the disease takes hold and causes ever more devastation. We witness her increasingly frequent visions of her long-deceased husband Ameet (Zubin Varla) and the interventions of her childhood friend Indrani (Shobna Gulati), as well as the support – and frustrations – of her three children, Raj (Raj Bajaj), Kamala (Natalie Dew) and Gopal (Marc Elliott).

It’s an achingly beautiful new play, full of sadness but with some unexpectedly hilarious lines. While Meera Syal may be the lead as the matriarch figure – and she’s fantastic – it is also a truly ensemble piece, with strong acting across the board. Whether we’re learning more about father-to-be Raj or seeing a conflicted Kamala trying to prepare for her medical exams while looking after her increasingly volatile mother, we really felt as though we bought into and invested in every character in the show.

It’s also a play that’s full of theatrical magic – props appear out of nowhere, costume changes happen in the blink of an eye – there’s some seriously impressive stagecraft to be seen here. The events of the play unfurl against a topical backdrop: whether the characters are joking about the state of river and sea pollution, or stressing about NHS waiting lists or sharing the sadness of isolation during the pandemic, it paints a recent picture of a broken Britain that we’ll be all too familiar with.

A Tupperware of Ashes is an impressive new play, telling a devastating story with impressive authenticity and humour, and is full of fine acting performances from a talented cast. Well worth checking out.

GAY TIMES gives A Tupperware of Ashes – 4/5

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