Written by Keelan Kember and directed by Monica Cox, Thanks for Having Me centres on a pair of housemates with sharply contrasting views on dating culture and relationships, but things don’t go as smoothly as they presume.
The flirtatious, charming playboy Honey (Kedar Williams-Stirling) proudly claims he’s not made for anything serious, while his mate Cashel (Keelan Kember), struggling to recover from a long-term breakup, still clings to fantasies of romance and marriage. Honey dates the deeply compassionate and warm-hearted Maya (Adeyinka Akinrinade), strolling with her through farmers’ markets and buying organic products, while Cashel seems to be starting a new chapter with this attractive and confident Eloise (Nell Tiger Free).
Thanks for Having Me feels like a mix of Y2K American rom-com TV shows and Japanese anime love-comedies. What leaves me slightly unfulfilled but strangely relieved is that the play never forces itself to tackle on any “issues” – maybe a little bit when Eloise reveals why she no longer believes in relationships: how men tend to see women either as deities or as nothing at all, forgetting that they are merely simple human beings too.
But soon, Kember gives up this touch on gender, and chooses instead to focus on witty and snappy dialogue exchanges. It may be a little on the simple side, but it flows like a clear stream, light and refreshing, far more enjoyable than the many productions striving for thematic reflections, but eventually sink into muddy, pretentious murkiness.
Eleanor Wintour’s naturalistic set design features Honey’s lounge and kitchen – cozy and modern, great taste. Look at the glowing green nightdress hanging elegantly on the rack! Look at the purple pendant lamps in the kitchen! Look at the wicker lounger and the sleek modern accent chair! They speechlessly but telling reveal who dating culture (and romantic love, in general) is for: the proletariats, those tiny but essential components forming of our society, a capitalist one. That society needs the myth of ‘true love’, an equivalence of procreation and reproduction for its own sake. Once upon a time, that myth was inscribed into our blood and instincts. But now, in the age of Tinder and Hinge, it seems to be slipping away. Under such circumstances, this play is exactly a seemingly casual take secretly nudging you to still “have faith”.
There’s something West-End-chill about Thanks For Having Me. It is the kind of play you go to on a typical Friday (or Wednesday) night: clear your mind, grab a decent meal and a drink, laugh a lot, maybe drink again, and head home feeling satisfied. Although, you might wonder why bother trekking halfway across London, instead of curling up lazily in the couch with a few episodes from How I met Your Mother or Kaguya-Sama: Love Is War – shows that offering just as many perfect and satisfying laughs as this theatrical play could do. But in the end, it’s perfectly okay, just as it’s perfectly fine to chant for romantic love, even it’s just a capitalised institution.
Listings and ticket information can be found here.
