NEVER CLOSER - Off The Ledge Theatre - Courtyard Studio - Canberra Theatre Centre.

Emily O"Mahoney (Deidre) - Breanna Kelly (Mary) - Tash Lyall (Niamh) - Pippin Carroll (Harry) - Joel Hrbek) in "Never Closer".

Playwright: Grace Chapple - Produced, Directed, Set & Lighting designer: Lachlan Houen

Costume design: Winsome Ogilvie – Sound designer/composer: Marlene Radice

Co-Lighting designer: Joshua James – Stage Manager: Lucy Van Dooren

Intimacy Coordinator: Jill Young

Courtyard Studio – Canberra Theatre Centre until 28^th February 2026.

Opening Night performance on 19^th February reviewed by BILL STEPHENS.

Breanna Kelly (Mary) - Tash Lyall (Niamh) - Pippin Carroll (Harry - Joel Hrbek (Jimmy)
Emily O'Mahoney (Mary) in "Never Closer"

Set in Northern Ireland in the 1980’s, Australian playwright, Grace Chapple’s debut play Never Closer follows a group of childhood friends, Deirdre, Mary, Niamh, Jimmy and Conor, who all reconnect unexpectedly at Deidre’s home on Christmas Eve, a decade after their last meeting.

On that occasion, having finished their schooling, the friends drank whisky, shared ghost stories and fantasised about their future ambitions. All had plans about what they hoped to do but were unsure about how to put those plans into action, except for Niamh who planned to go to London to study medicine.

Ten years on and grieving her mother’s passing, Deidre (Emily O’Mahoney) is in a relationship with Conor (Nick Bisa), who is trying to drink away his own grief at the murder of his father during the ongoing struggle for a united Ireland.

Emily O'Mahoney (Deirdre) - Joel Hrbek (Jimmy) in "Never Closer"

Jimmy (Joel Hrbek) is the first to arrive, surprising Deidre. Previously there had been a hint of a relationship between the two, but ten years on, Jimmy finally reveals to Deidre his regret at choosing to stay on his family farm in the hope that she would eventually want to be with him.

Next caller is Mary (Breanna Kelly) effervescent as always, and anxious to share with her friends, her pleasure in her new job for which she moved to Dublin.

But, surprising them all, Niamh (Tash Lyall), who had failed to stay connected during the time she had been London. However, not only has Niamh succeeded in her ambition to become a psychiatrist, but she has also brought her English fiancé, Harry (Pippin Carroll) to introduce to her friends.

What should have been a happy re-union becomes a battleground when Mary’s attempt to ease tensions by suggesting a party-game involving drinking, erupts with revelations of festering tensions and accusations.

Lachlan Houen has assembled an excellent, deeply invested, ensemble cast, then guided each to mine Chapple’s absorbing script to bring authenticity and nuance to their characterisations.

Emily O’Mahoney’s Deidre is snappy, highly strung, and easily offended, often so much so, that one wonders why her friends would put up with her.  Her response to Jimmy’s revelation, however, is beautifully managed and believable.

Joel Hrbrek is quite superb as the dependable, though deeply repressed, Jimmy, who finally gets the opportunity to show his true colours and humanity when confronting Conor’s murderous rage.

Nick Bisa (Conor) - Tash Lyall (Niamh) in "Never Closer). 

Nick Bisa oozes menace and is outstanding as the deeply conflicted Conor who deals with his festering resentment for his father’s murder by committing an unthinkable act of vengeance.   

Resisting the temptation for easy laughs by making his English barrister, Harry, a caricature, Pippin Carroll opts for authenticity, depth and nuance with a characterisation that garners more than his fair share of laughs, particularly with his depiction of Harry’s predicament managing an oversupply of whisky.

Breanna Kelly is sheer delight as the effervescent Mary, constantly defusing difficult moments with wisecracks and silliness, while investing her character with admirable warmth and wisdom.

Tash Lyall confidently portrays Niamh, a friend who has always understood her own direction and thoughts, never allowing her background to limit her.

Houen’s prop -heaving setting, depicting an Irish working-class kitchen, looks attractive and authentic. His direction of his cast within it, thoughtful and well-managed. The well-chosen costumes and carefully selected background music also enhanced the storytelling.

A pity then that Houen’s solution to the problem inherent in the script, for significant changes within the setting to denote the passage of time needed for the prologue and epilogue, required long breaks for stage-management and cast to re-arrange decorative and often unnecessary props, proved a disappointing blemish on an otherwise absorbing evening of excellent theatre.   

                                              Photos by Ben Appleton - PHOTOX

        This review also published in AUSTRALIAN ARTS REVIEW. wwwartsreview.com.au