Theatre Review: The Effect
The Effect: What is Love
Seamore Theatre Productions
The Byre, 10/03/25
Written by Lucy Prebble
Directed by Abi Harper
Produced by Rowan Kehrer
Review by Callisto Lodwick
What is love? Other than the bombastic refrain of Haddaway’s 1993 dance pop hit, it’s a rather thorny question. Is it chemical signals in the brain? A genuine connection between people? Irrational insanity? An illusion? The attempt to answer these questions plagues the characters of Lucy Prebble’s The Effect, the inaugural show from Seamore Theatre Productions. The result is a charming, funny, and at times deeply moving exploration of how we believe our minds work, and how that belief shapes our lives.
The play takes place over the course of an early-stage clinical trial for an antidepressant. Vivacious, overly friendly Tristan (Dylan Swain) is taken by the quieter, skeptical Connie (Sophie Joblin), who begin a clandestine relationship away from the prying eyes of the lead researcher, Dr Lorna James (Imogen Griffiths). Lorna is being watched as well: her charismatic boss, Toby (Elliott Reed), displays a strangely familiar interest in both her research and her personal life.
It's a wonderful play. The characters are so lifelike it hurts, brought to life perfectly by the twitching expressions and fidgeting fingers of the actors. The structure lends itself to snappy, engaging pacing, and the dialogue is sharp when it needs to be, humourous at the right moments, and takes you aback when you let your guard down. Prebble has gone on to write and produce HBO’s Succession, and you can see the same fingerprints she left on the show plastered all over The Effect.
It's not all praise for the professionals: the student actors shine as well. Every one of the main cast is striking, and emotional, even when they’re breaking down onstage. Tristan and Connie’s romance, be it their initial teasing, rush of fresh love, the inevitable tension, or the stunted yet hopeful state the play leaves them in, is played flawlessly by the pair of actors. Fans of Normal People will find much to enjoy in Swain and Joblin’s depiction of a troubled love. Griffiths’ brisk, clinical air is so opaque it’s a breath of fresh air when the character finally lets her guard down and bares her heart—as the play progresses her character shifts from faceless doctor to a tortured woman with a rich inner world of her own. Reed manages to be affronting in his charisma—or perhaps that is just because we’re seeing him through the eyes of the other characters. Who can say why we feel the way we do? The entire play proves there is no way to answer that.
The show makes excellent use of the limited space in the Barron to create the oppressing environment of the clinic. The lighting is particularly inspiring: a massive light rig stretches over the audience’s heads, illuminating the actors from striking angles in both harsh white and deep blue. Various flashes of light are also used to great effect. The extensive props list makes one suspect the medical school’s cabinets were raided: hospital highlights include blood pressure cuffs, urine samples, and a model brain. With another nice touch, the stagehands are dressed in nurse outfits, which also lets them hand props to and from the actors mid-scene. The setting of the show in the round increases the sense of claustrophobia and surveillance, highlighting the crushing confines of our attitudes towards love.
I’ll cut to the chase: The Effect is wonderful. The play is often hopeful, sometimes crushing, and always thoughtful, with the love at its core something genuinely exuberant, tender, even beautiful—something you root for despite the frequent bouts of fiery, physical anger. The actors are fantastic, the set immersive, and the writing top-notch. At barely halfway through the semester, it feels early to call this is the best show of the year—but I wouldn’t count it out.
