Women on the Verge of HRT – unseen and unheard no more (GBL Productions at Grand Opera House until Saturday 11)

The spirit of Daniel O’Donnell is strong as Ciarán O’Brien steps on stage, singing with a familiar Donegall brogue, tilts his head down towards the audience and holds the eye of people in the front row. Like the two lead characters in Women on the Verge of HRT, the boisterous Grand Opera House audience are out for the night and wanting to have a good time.

In the case of Vera (played by Katie Tumelty), she’s hoping for reassurance that hitting fifty with a divorce under her belt won’t forever brand her as over the hill. Meanwhile Anna (Jo Donnelly) is coming to terms with her sexless – although not entirely loveless – marriage. Avoiding a long overnight bus trip back home to Belfast and more shifts in Poundstretcher, the pair are staying over in a quiet hotel.

Marie Jones weaves a Celtic tale about Aisling and banshees in with Vera and Anna’s night of discovery and adventure as they adapt to changing circumstances and changing bodies. Tumelty excels as the sharp-tongued and sultry Vera, practically purring each time the concierge arrives with another magical tray of drinks. Anna is a gift for Donnelly’s skilled physical comedy, throwing shade, wincing, stomping around and flopping out on the hotel’s twin beds. The pair make Vera and Anna’s friendship very believable and relatable.

Representation can be a power asset to theatre, and right from the first moment Anna reaches into her bag and pulls out a neck fan, the audience enjoy seeing themselves and their family and friends in the mirror that Marie Jones’ two-hour story holds up.

For the Daniel diehards, the play is never more than 15 minutes away from another quick burst of a melody that the audience will gently croon along to. As well as charming the crowd with Daniel’s dulcet tones, O’Brien is versatile with his characterisation of current and former husbands, numerous local menfolk, and even a new wife.

The second act ties the story together with a rather hard-to-swallow double Bobby Ewing conceit. It’s probably best that the action rushes through without pausing to dissect the consequences of the dream plot device. First staged in 1995, the play has been lightly updated to add mentions of the ubiquitous Alexa, yet some quite outdated references remain to Crimplene frocks.

Gregor Donnelly’s mossy set serves the storytelling well, though the stagehand hiding at the back to make it spin deserves a proper round of applause and a box of painkillers. (Some of the smaller spins are probably unnecessary.) Director Matthew McElhinney thankfully avoids the temptation to add video to the production, allowing the action to crack on at a good pace, with Donnelly and Tumelty creating a real sense of playfulness.

Women on the Verge of HRT is a hoot, and it’s running at the Grand Opera House until Saturday 11 May.

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