| 14 August 2011
How does a Midwestern, churchgoing, motor-biking family-man become Rachael Jones? Lucy Danser’s world premiere of ‘Rachel’s Café’ gets under the skin of this very question. Based on the true story of Bloomington café owner Miss Jones, who Danser met whilst studying at Indiana University, this show is all about creating acceptance and understanding over a cup of coffee (or a nibble of cookie, as it turned out). The story is an inspirational one and brings to the fore many of the personal dilemmas and triumphs Rachael has faced. From the difficulty of telling her wife and three children and sustaining their relationship, the hardship of finding a job as a trans person, and the guilt of making others feel uncomfortable by her presence, to finding salvation in her café and offering a safe place that welcomes all, this story is a deeply human one.
Graham Elwell does well in the role of Rachael, giving her a softness and irrepressible warmth and charm. His gestures and facial expressions are perhaps a little too repetitive to command the audience’s undivided attention, but his attempts are laudable. The shortfall of the play comes in the form of Lucy Danser’s writing and direction. She has found a great subject but does not do it justice. Lacking shape and refinement, the dialogue is so bitty one feels she has simply copied and pasted snippets from her interviews with Rachel on to a page and added a title. This show could have been much, much better.
Rachael’s Café, Jekyll and Hyde, 14-28 August, 2.00pm
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