The Seven Pomegranate Seeds at Rose Theatre was remarkable

Rose Theatre is my nearest and I try to get to all of the mainstream theatre there. I seem to be doing quite well at that as my phone informed me that this was my sixtieth check-in at the venue.

It is a gentle walk of about an hour along the river to get there and I was early enough to grab a coffee before the show, and resilient enough not to have any cake wit it.

As usual, I had forgotten why I had made the booking but a quick look at one of the posters informed me that it was directed by Melly Still which was reason enough.

The set was enough to confirm that I had made a good decision. The stage was sparse with little more than a wooden door and a small table as standard props and these were complemented by oddities like rocks hanging from cords.

The play, it transpired, was a series of short stories derived from Greek legendary women like Persephone, Phaedra and Medusa. The degree of connection was lost to me due to my poor knowledge of the original material but it did not matter, the stories stood in their own right.

Several factors made this one of the best things I have ever seen at Rose. Full use of the stage was made in a way that I had never seen before, including two structures thrusting over the stage. The script rhymed subtly, enough for you to notice but not to much for it to be a distraction. All the parts were played by Shannon Hayes and Niamh Cusack who were both excellent.

The Seven Pomegranate Seeds was exactly the sort of modern and intelligent play we were promised when Rose Theatre first opened and is exactly what I go to the theatre to see.