Grit is in abundant supply at the minute and never more so than at the Warwick Arts Centre where Neil Leynshon’s exploration of the bleak reality of modern rural existence is met with a gratifyingly warm response from the audience. Set against a harrowing backdrop of a crumbling farmhouse besieged by the Autumnal bounty of apples strewn across the stage, Comfort Me With Apples demonstrates how a family death can act as a catalyst for both conflict and catharsis for those left behind to cope. Unwelcome family reunion The principle character Irene (Veronica Roberts) finds herself at the centre of an unwelcome family reunion with her estranged Daughter, Brenda (Penny Layden) and her Son’s ex-girlfriend, Linda (Lisa Stevenson) following the untimely death of her husband, Arthur. Irene’s struggle to retain her rule of the roost gradually falls in the shadow of a looming sense of revelation where an audience’s sense of frustration at the sniping and repetitive dialogue is tempered with lighter moments of childhood reminiscence. Although at first sight, the characters appear almost unbelievably rustic as though some ill-fated union has taken place between the Dingles and the Archers, the play steams towards a stand-off rather than a comic resolution that is nothing if not gripping. As in the initial scene we see Irene tentatively yet skillfully teasing knots out of a bundle of yarn, so it is with this finesse that Leynshon teases out the separate elements of this slow burning, yet intriguing tale. --- Hannah is part of ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ Coventry & Warwickshire's Citizen 1000 project, for more information and to find out how to apply, click on the link below: | 
