Shifters
12 September 2024
Duke of York’s Theatre
3.0 out of 5.0 stars
Shifters is currently playing at the Duke of York’s Theatre for its West End transfer after a run at the Bush Theatre. The show runs 100 minutes straight through and is booking until the 12th October.
Des and Dre have known each other since school, but when Des left years ago, Dre stayed and tried to make the best of his life. Eight years later she’s back and memories flood their veins in this passionate rom-com.
Now, personally I’m just not a fan of rom-coms in general, so keep that in mind when consuming my little review. It’s rare that I actually enjoy a rom-com based show, and this one is absolutely one of the better ones!
The stage design is quite simple, the stage reminding of a black-box theatre, with a lightly speckled floor, black boxes strewn throughout, and lighting rods hanging from the ceiling. There are no other set items, but the boxes are used to great effect, shifting from being utilised as seating opportunities, to becoming actual boxes filled with props, rummaged through as Dre’s grandmother’s house is being packed up after her recent death. The light is used to brilliant effect as well, denoting different time settings through different colours, occasionally completely flickering off, at other times pulsing, shifting, dimming and glowing. Simple but extremely effective and beautiful, doing away with distractions in this romantic two-hander focussed on memory and cultural influences.
Shifters is playful, flirty, funny, Des and Dre feeling like fully rounded characters ripped from real life and plopped onto the stage. Their conversations are natural, flowing beautifully. Time jumps take us back to the two of them meeting in 6th form, slowly discovering their friendship, their feelings for each other, their struggles with family and identity. The plot unfolds slowly and beautifully, with some very tense moments but always full of levity and laughter. At times Shifters feels a little too casual to realise its full emotional impact, but it is grounded and touching nonetheless.
