Skylight is a thought-provoking study of two ex-lovers talking it out on the battlefield of love. It is a play that would challenge any theatre company, and I was absolutely blown away by this student production. Skylight perfectly captures a single defining moment in a wider story. It is simultaneously an exploration of a very personal relationship, and an allusion to greater struggles of male vs. female and left-wing vs. right-wing.

With a cast of only three, Skylight is not a play for faint-hearted actors. Georgie Henley (Kyra) was faced with the huge task of inhabiting the stage for the duration of the play, and delivered a performance that Carey Mulligan, who played the same role at the National, would be proud of. The silent characterisation of Kyra as she marked workbooks at the beginning of the play was delightful, and a successfully bold move from the director.

I find that the hardest challenge for an actor is striking a balance between subtlety and melodrama, something that Georgie very nearly achieved. The subtle light and shades of the character came across clearly as we watched Kyra wrestle between feelings of devotion and detest. It is especially impressive that she managed to act so fluidly while preparing a whole meal on stage! One area I found slightly inconsistent, however, was the intensity of passionate moments. I would have loved to have seen Georgie really let go so we could see the effect that her ex-lover could have on her emotions. This meant the audience got to see the broken and beaten down side of her character, but not quite enough of her fighting for what she believes in.  

Will Bishop (Tom) also managed to portray an incredibly complex character successfully. As soon as he walked on the stage he had the presence of possessiveness and dominance that is referred to later in the play, and demonstrated a deep understanding of the character and his motivations in every line. Strangely, my criticisms for Will are the exact opposite to those I had for Georgie: while Will handled the moments of tension and climax perfectly, I felt his character was not quite given the subtlety and vulnerability it needed. Tom was played as so arrogant that I couldn’t quite work out why anyone would ever fall in love with him. I was yearning for the tenderness that could be seen occasionally when he looked at Kyra to be translated into his lines, so the audience could be seduced, as Kyra was, by the character’s charm.

Tom Taplin was also very successful in the supporting role as Edward, with his appearances nicely framing the play. Tom delivered his character notably younger than the other two, and his body language expertly portrayed the nervousness of an 18-year-old out on a limb. While his nervous sweetness was on point, I felt his character needed slightly more arrogance. Because of this, Kyra’s hostility towards Edward felt slightly unwarranted even when he delivered quite obnoxious lines. I felt the script yearning to liken Edward to his dad, and although I feel it was right to give him more sensibility, it would have been lovely to see more glimpses of his father’s arrogance. But, again, an impressive performance.

Despite the minimalist narrative my attention was maintained throughout the show. Skylight's directors (Amelia Oakley - Director, Amy Malone - Assistant Director) managed to avoid the play feeling static as slow moving, small cast plays sometimes are, and the space was used effectively to characterise as well as keeping the play visually interesting. I applaud fidelity to realism, with almost all of the music being diegetic. It is brave not to rely on quirks and stylisation and stick to pure realism when tackling a play as slow moving as Skylight. As the dialogue, set and music was so realistic, I thought it strange that the lighting was not. It would be more in keeping for the lights come on as if characters had turned them on, maybe through flicking wall switches or turning on lamps.

One aspect that I thought was a slight shame was that the humour of the play was not quite explored to its full potential. There were some exceptionally funny lines and interactions, which never quite moved past chuckle-worthy as the comic timing wasn’t always spot-on. I wonder whether the moments of comedy had been neglected for more emphasis on the sadness, anger and passion in play. However, the play brought me to tears on multiple occasions.  If you like being emotionally challenged, go and see it.