How does the old rhyme go: first comes sex, second comes… revelations? Well, it might be slightly different from the nursery rhyme sung in our youth, but it’s how Mary, a Glaswegian, and Mike, an American, are introduced after spending the night together in Edinburgh. David Ireland’s quick, witty, and entertaining one-act play, Most Favoured, centres on the morning after this one-night stand. And a bucket of KFC.
Lauren Lyle plays the ever-persistent, emotionally unfiltered Mary, and Alexander Arnold plays the nonchalant Mike, AKA a self-professed celestial entity. Lyle and Arnold are brilliantly entertaining in their roles, delivering a compelling performance with a sizzling dynamic that has the audience laughing with every other line. Their mannerisms are on point, and their comedic timing is perfectly attuned to the reactions of the audience; well-paced and well-executed.
We are introduced to the two with the scene set in a hotel room, where the curtains are drawn, the lights are dimmed, the bed is unkempt and clothes are strewn on the floor, which points to one thing: sex. Well, definitely for Mary. Perhaps not, if you are Mike. Immediately, you sense that the two are on very different wavelengths: she is utterly enamoured by her recollections of their sex, while he is enamoured by a bucket of KFC nuggets he just bought.
She is animated as she recalls their night of passion, claiming it to be the best night of her life. His mind is elsewhere; no, not on another woman, nor on his post-Mary clarity, but on the chicken he is tasting for the first time. First alarm bell: how is it that Mike can be from Indiana, a state bordered by the Kentucky, but has never heard of Kentucky Fried Chicken? This raises suspicions with Mary, who begins to probe his unfazed character. In an attempt to get Mike to open up to her, Mary admits something to him about their night together, prompting an even bigger and peculiar admission from Mike, thus unravelling the heart of the play.
Admittedly, this is where the play momentarily loses me. Mike’s admission seems so utterly nonsensical that I almost feel my eyes wanting to roll back into my head, but pretty quickly, you understand that this admission is a wider part of an underlying theme of this play: faith. Though short in length with a run time of just 45 minutes, Ireland masterfully weaves in themes of faith, loneliness and longing to his writing, all while maintaining a comedic tone.
While Mike’s unexpected admission pulls the story in a weird direction, Ireland’s sharp writing, Max Elton’s direction, and Lyle and Arnold’s amusing dynamic quickly pull me back into the fun from feeling momentarily miffed. The eruption of laughter from the audience throughout is a clear indicator of Ireland’s talent for creating an unwavering comedy that keeps the audience engaged from start to finish. If you’re in search of a play that is short, sweet, and keeps you laughing, Most Favoured at Soho Theatre is where you’ll want to be.
Listings and ticket information can be found here
