Objects pile and tower as walls in Chloë Lawrence-Taylor’s debut play. Since their father’s funeral, when Bea scratched an obscene picture into Veda’s car bonnet, the two sisters have lost contact, and Bea has been isolated in an ever-growing haven of “stuff”. Old vinyl, books, crockery, bags for life and mountains of cutlery have turned her home into a graveyard of the past. To an outsider, it is the depths of hoarding; to Bea, every dusty item is a relic to be pored over and adored.
But, now Veda has stopped by unexpectedly to “fix” things. Lawrence-Taylor’s vivid dialogue paints the sisters both as strangers, with years missing between them, and familiars, bound by their shared youth. They remember intimate details about each other; Veda drinks camomile tea, Bea loves bonsai trees. The actors, Holly Atkins (Veda) and Rosie Cavaliero (Bea), bring remarkable emotional texture to their roles; their relationship feels lived-in and layered with complication. As they bicker, laugh and plead with one another to understand their side of things, their speech rolls over each other in a natural rhythm.
That realism is the key to the first section of Lucy Morrison’s delicate production. But, if you look closer within the clutter of Naomi Dawson’s set, there are signs that give away an upcoming rupture. When Veda reveals a shock of her own, lamps spread across the stage sporadically flicker and dim. A foreboding rumble is heard just below their conversation.
It feels slightly premature when Bea’s junkyard kingdom starts to fall apart around the sisters. There are still holes in the women’s histories, which makes the second half of the play something of a maze. Still, Lawrence-Taylor is a master of showing the messy loops and back-and-forths that come in heated moments with loved ones. Even as a writer in germination, she has a unique grasp of human behaviour that is far beyond her years.
• At Hampstead theatre from 11 April to 17 May
