Review: Theatre of the absurd in intriguing Lemons play, captivating South African production

 “I have no words” has become something of a contemporary refrain – as in – I have no words to describe how good this is and when are trying to comfort mourners. These are two examples. Yes, we are limited when posting on X and other platforms but generally, there is no cap on our word count in terms of conversation. Imagine if there was a cap at how many words that you could use. In his rom-com, Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons, UK writer, Sam Steiner plays with the absurdist premise that a hush law has been proposed, allocating 140 words per person, per day. The play was a hit of the 2015 Edinburgh Fringe Festival and is being staged in South Africa, performed by Jessie Diepeveen and Maxim du Toit and directed by Henu Baden. The February to March 2025 season is on at Theatre Arts and The Drama Factory. It is a delicious play to crunch on and the premise makes one consider the words that we use in life.

Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons is one of the most intriguing two-handers that I have seen in a long time, with superb performances. It is not only an intriguing play, it is entertaining and invites one to consider the art of conversation – what we say and don’t say to each other – and how we say what we say and what we really mean – and the stuff in between – in the spaces that we cannot reach.   It raises terrifying issues of legislation of the personal and private, with politicians as Big Brother (or Sister/They) calling the shots. I want to see this play again.  I can as this production is on at the Drama Factory in Somerset West (March 6, 7, 8, 14 and 15, 2025).

Lemons (lemons x 5, if you are counting the lemons) tracks how a young couple deal with the impending law and how it impacts on their romance. Bernadette (Diepeveen) is an ambitious family lawyer. She is not a “divorce lawyer”, she scoffs.  Words matter in this play, a war of words and love. Oliver (du Toit) is a musician and activist. There is considerable tension between them and the disparity in their earning power. Bernadette constantly lauds it over him that she earns more than him. He is contemptuous of her zeal to work and follow rules.

Relationships are complicated and this relationship becomes tangled up in the hush law. Bernadette is acquiescent. . Oliver pushes back and attends protest marches and consorts with a former squeeze which heightens the tension between the young couple

Steiner’s non-linear narrative intersects and loops the past and present. It took me a while to follow and grasp the time shifts. I think that the production could do with lighting cues or subtle costume changes (donning a hat for instance) to indicate time shifts.

In the sequences relating to the present, the protagonists with their limited word count have to vent, express themselves and communicate within verbal restraints with truncated sentence and phrasing. Consider: “I love you”. If you insert “really”, as in “I really love you”, how does that impact on what you “really” mean? Love you? Delicious language and word play.

As Oliver the activist rages on, the more you have in terms of wealth and status, the less words you need. Those without words need a voice. From their meeting at a pet cemetery, which is cute and millennial, Bernadette and Oliver get sucked into a vortex, with the possibility of being muted. It is terrifying and dystopian. Is this how it will all end for us? The play resonates for me in terms of absurdist theatre like Beckett’s Waiting for Godot.

The absurdity of this dystopian new order is beautifully teased out by Diepeveen and du Toit, through physically charged theatre – gestures, eye rolls, fussing with their clothes and hair. The energy between them is visceral and believable with wonderful chemistry. The intense sparring is grounded by the clever design of this production – a plinth (rostrum) which reminds me of a boxing ring. The rostrum demarcates the space and heightens the intimacy in this two-hander.  They are locked in, tethered together.

Diepeveen and Du Toit imbue their performances with dynamism, desire, pathos, yearning and grief. One can feel the urgency as they thrash out and punch through with their allocated words, desperate for a happy ending.  I am not going to plot spoil. Go and see this play.

A huge round of applause to the young and talented cast and creatives for securing the rights and presenting this play in Cape Town. It is the first professional production in South Africa. Please don’t miss this production with captivating performances by Diepeveen and Du Toit.

❇ Maxim du Toit and Jessie Diepeveen in Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons by Sam Steiner (UK) , South African production, directed by Henu Baden. Feburary/March 2025 season at Theatre Arts and The Drama Factory. Image supplied.