For those who live in London and are looking for a diverting night's entertainment, might I commend the play Baggage for your delectation? Though formulaic and predictable, I found myself held by its structure and pleasantly surprised by the well-crafted dialogue. It's about internet dating - a subject I've written about in my soon-to-be-published book about love addiction.
Set in a pub in Primrose Hill, the plot follows the fortunes of two lads about London and their varying success with internet dating - satisfyingly, meeting the old-fashioned way wins out - you'll see it coming but it doesn't matter, because the journey taken is interesting enough to hold your attention. I found the use of statistical data projected onto the stage, though no longer a new idea, dressed the dialogue and plot like zesty lemon and oil poured on good, organic bean sprout salad (and if that's not enough to whet your appetite, I'm all out of metaphors) .
One thing I'm perplexed about is the copy used to promote this production. 'It's not you, it's me' seemed kind of arbitrary - it may have been there in the dialogue, but if it was I missed it (maybe my problem, not theirs). But the night I went the theatre was only half full, and I'm wondering whether the marketing might have been the missing link. Baggage handlers, bring on the Copywriters.
