The Receipt

Based on a metropolis that could well be London, Perrier Award Winner, Will Adamsdale's new play, now on at the Lyric Studio before embarking on a nationwide tour, packs exactly this kind of experience .

Set in a city called Glinton, where swipe cards, complicated coffees and empty salutations have taken over, The Receipt, is a lyrical, fairytale take on urban isolation and the frustrations of city living told by two men, a synthesizer and a couple of filing cabinets. It's funny, beautiful and perceptive and will appeal not just to city dwellers but to anyone with a heart that beats and a soul that feels.

The ludicrously talented Adamsdale plays Wylie, an office worker who decides to find the owner of the receipt for a cup of coffee. Wylie is in essence a kooky, sensitive -and much less violent- version of Michael Douglas in Falling Down, who cracks up and sets himself up on his own mission impossible. Virtuoso sound designer Chris Branch on the Moog synthesizer- who has also worked with the RSC and Bjork- provides the sound track to this meandering endeavor as well as playing the Nathan-Barley-esque characters Wylie runs into on his urban quest.

The first time I saw The Receipt was at this year's Edinburgh Festival, in a small venue, packed to capacity. As a jaded Londoner catching a few days of culture North of the border this show was my festival highlight and it was no surprise that it left Edinburgh with a clutch of awards. I was curious to see how it would translate to the Lyric's studio but I needn't have worried because it is still just as witty, clever and affecting.

Adamsdale is an extra-ordinarily innovative theatre maker which makes The Receipt and its ingenious use of office furniture, space and sound effects a succession of beguiling surprises, that it would be impossible not to smile at or be touched by. The final scene in particular is one of the most poignant renderings I have seen in a long time- I would tell you what happens but I don't want to spoil the treat. And not surprising for a man who scooped the nation's top funnyman award- his observational comedy which drives The Receipt is also spot on.

Productions as unique and well crafted as The Receipt are rare and they will become rarer still if the BAC, where this was lovingly work-shopped for years, has its funding from Wandsworth Council cut. The Receipt is a true gem, priceless in fact and the cultural powerhouse that birthed it should be maintained.

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