Southwark Playhouse is an exciting small venue to visit with the black box space transformed on every visit, great legroom and an exciting and innovative programme. Their latest show is Neil Marcus’s production of Jack Engelhard’s book Indecent Proposal which was made famous by the 1993 film of the same name starring Robert Redford and Demi Moore. However, writer Michael Conley has gone back to the book and created a tale with music by Dylan Schlosberg. They creatively have given all six characters a singer/songwriter backstory so that they perform their songs as singers not as characters randomly bursting into song. It is a clever structure but, in some ways, limits the character development and story as they can’t interact naturally with the other characters but merely sing at them from the stage or while busking.
Jonny and Rebecca have been together for ten years and are still very much in love. They both work in the casino and music venues of Atlantic City. Jonny is a regular supporting act at the Ruckus room of Oasis Casino resort where hostess Annie Poole seems to let anyone on stage for a song. They are tempted into a relationship by suave rich former singer Larry who is thinking of buying a record label and has the money to get everything he wants. Heidi and the sixth character the busker are bystanders who get to add their musical voice. It is a simple set-up; what is more important money or love and is there a price to be paid in the pursuit of both. The writers seek to set this period piece from the 1980s in the 2021 context of the #MeToo campaign but it still feels that Rebecca is the pawn in the sandwich until she breaks free to carve her own path. They did not wholly convince me that they were deeply in love and her sudden change of mind when she dresses up to meet Larry was not wholly convincing either. This is the central pillar of the story and the structure of the piece focusing on the songs inhibits the development of the narrative.
