REVIEW: RUN SISTER RUN by Chloë Moss at Arcola Theatre 2 – 26 July 2025
‘Masterfully constructed, memorable and moving.’ ★★★★
Told in reverse chronology, Run Sister Run moves backwards through time. With impressionistic, contemporary direction from Marlie Haco, we start in classic theatre territory, with a middle-class couple having a clipped barney. Mother and wife, Connie manically arranges flowers, drinks gin and pops anti-anxiety medication. Father, Adrian, is patronising, supercilious and believes any problem can be solved by throwing money at it. Teenage son, Jack, played by Charlie Beavan proffers the right combination of hormone-addled rage and vulnerability. He’s been dumped by his girlfriend for their incompatibility, but she is pregnant and intends to keep it. There’s lots of braying, swearing and concern about how things look. It’s not a family you like or warm to but this this is just the tip of the iceberg.
When Auntie Ursula unexpectedly turns up, it’s hard to believe she’s Connie’s sister - they are so different. Ursula has a thick Irish accent, seems impetuous and imaginative, a real live wire. But she must be something of a liability because Connie wants her out the house as quickly as possible; there are some important guests arriving for an upwardly mobile dinner party and there could be a promotion in it for Rat Man. How could two sisters be so different and what caused them to be so far apart? As the play spools backwards through four decades, with performers literally walking backwards through the space, more light is shed on their lives and with each scene, a different part of the puzzle falls into place.
Masterfully constructed, memorable and moving, Run Sister Run explores the blood and bonds that can tie siblings together. It looks at what family means, what it can mean, and how the contours of family change and evolve over time. All the performances are strong and the cast crackles with energy. The dynamic between the sisters is particularly well-drawn out with strong dialogue, interpretive dance, and games. Jo Herbert gives a nuanced performance of multi-faceted Connie, while Kelly Gough is an irrepressible force of nature as Ursula. Adrian’s character is written flatter and more mono-dimensional. Theo Fraser Steele embodies the worst kind of smug, self-satisfied middle management. Initially marked out as the antagonist, far greater villainous forces have shaped the lives and destines of the sisters - including one big secret that binds them forever.
Intense, emotional, funny, unexpected, Run Sister Run is one hour forty with no interval. While it could be shorter, some of the exchanges are very long, this play maintains momentum and allows the audience to immerse themselves in this whole, extraordinary family drama and love story. Run Sister Run by Chloë Moss was the winner of the Plaines Plough Award in 2020 but the global pandemic meant only a few performances were presented then. Five years later, this shiny update from Double Telling is at the Arcola for its long-awaited London premier. With a freshly composed, stirring soundtrack by composer Ákos Lustyik and talented ensemble, Run Sister Run demonstrates time does not wither great drama, and this is certainly that.
REVIEW: RUN SISTER RUN by Chloë Moss
Directed by Marlie Haco
Arcola Theatre, 24 Ashwin Street, E8 3DL
2nd July – 26th July, 2025
CAST
Jo Herbert
Kelly Gough
Theo Fraser Steele
Charlie Beaven
Set & Costume Design by: Tomás Palmer
Composed by: Ákos Lustyik
Lighting Design by: Alex Forey
Produced by: Toby Mather
