We begin at the end, so to speak, in 1977 with two ex-lovers discussing some of their times together, and why they're with each other now. It then proceeds to run back through time (at one or two point forward a few hours to later that evening) over the years of their story, to arrive at the beginning. It's not the only play to have been written in such a way, but of the ones I've seen it's certainly the cleverest and the most sure of where it's actually going. Hints of what's to come later in the story (that is, what we've already seen in the play) are dropped in without being shown off too much, and in a way that similar plays sometimes don't manage, there's actually some sort of a rounding off at the end. Or rather, an open end left. The story itself isn't terribly original, but the way it's written is very well done indeed.

The set rotates between rooms, from bar to office to bedroom to flat and so on, and is all done basically, in the era of the play (from 1977 back to 1968), with costumes also more or less contemporary with the years shown at the start of each scene. Lighting is very simple indeed - the whole set is lit at once, and the acting style is similarly naturalistic, although for perhaps the first couple of minutes of the very first scene it seems a little wooden on the part of Jay Villiers as Jerry (it becomes clear pretty quickly that this is just the nature of his character).

The story itself concerns Jerry and Emma's affair (or the events after it), and the effect this has on both of their relationships with Robert - Emma's husband and Jerry's best friend, who has also not been faithful to Emma. The attitude of the lovers is summed up perfectly in a scene towards the end, with Jerry asking Emma "have you ever been unfaithful... to me?" - the idea that their love is true love, rather than a purely passionate, physical affair, shows us, perhaps, a different view of such a relationship to that which we normally see.

The whole thing is well executed and, of course, well written. It's also at times mildly depressing, but in that very slight way that makes you a little melancholy and reflective, yet still allows you to leave with the belief that you've thoroughly enjoyed a very good night at the theatre. Which, when all's said and done, you have. It's one of the final productions at the Old Vic before the new artistic directing team take over next month, and on this evidence, the current ones are going out with a bang.

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