After The End

What could be worse than being burned alive by a nuclear fireball? Surviving one, suggests Dennis Kelly’s impeccable two-hander set in a fall-out shelter.

Mark’s friends mocked him for keeping the bunker stocked and ready, but it appears he may have the last laugh now, since he has not only sealed himself away but also rescued his colleague Louise – the object of his careful, long-term affection.

This production, helmed by the Citz's current trainee director Amanda Gaughan, gets off to an intriguing start as Mark (played by the theatre's resident acting intern Jonathan Dunn) updates his companion on what happened after they left the pub and heard an almighty bang. There's something about Dunn's performance – mannered, almost a little camp – that feels a little “off”. Nicola Daley's Louise is certainly more comfortable to watch, but as the plot unfolds things fall into place and Dunn really comes into his own.

Gaughan directs the two actors with considerable flair, but elsewhere there are some choices that miss the mark. Flickering lights in between scenes creates a sense of unease but also irritation, and the similar use of static noise introduces confusion as there's a radio in the bunker that is switched off for most of the time. By contrast, Neil Haynes's transparent yet horribly claustrophobic set is superb.

Just like with Kelly's superb interrupted-dinner thriller Orphans, it would be wrong to give too much away about what happens during the pair's confinement, but suffice to say that atrocity becomes opportunity with chilling echoes of true-crime sensations, and the tables are turned several times.

This is an edge-of-the-seat thriller that grips from start to finish. It's not first date material and pessimistic doesn't begin to cover the tone, but Kelly once again demonstrates his extraordinary ability to get under the skin of profoundly flawed characters, and the production is certainly well worth seeing.

By coincidence, the same play is due to be performed at Dundee Rep in June.