“Getting a Drink at the End of the World” is written and directed by Daisy Hills. It follows Leo (Jesse James Lamb) and Michelle (Inês Drumond), bartenders in a busy cocktail bar, as they navigate the final days of Earth due to a world-ending event.
The play starts with a recorded government radio announcement that the world will be destroyed in 7 months following a meteor hit. Michelle has just started her first day in the cocktail bar and is striving to live normally, maintaining a routine. Leo on the other hand is adopting a more laissez faire attitude and is ‘ok with it’.
If the world was ending tomorrow, you’d probably get drunk, have sex or hug your family, but 7 months? Life goes on and food must be put on the table. There was very little of the outside world in Daisy Hill’s script and Leo and Michelle are considered almost in isolation from the global events. How do you handle common life events, a broken romance or the death of a family member? Does it feel irrelevant or more significant given how long they have? They discuss the lack of supplies, but we are given no indication of who is drinking. Introducing some mood music or lighting would give a more definite indication of the bar’s operating hours.
I feel more could be made of the sound effects to add jeopardy to the play. It takes a while to realise that there is a steady beat behind the music. A slower, more pronounced beat would heighten the sense of time running out and add a more ominous feeling.
There is much to like about this performance, but it lacks impact.
3 stars
Reviewed by Nina Gardner
Originally published on https://theatreandartreviews.com/2025/08/13/getting-a-drink-at-the-end-of-the-world-camden-fringe-2025/
Showing at The Etcetera Theatre this event has now finished. For further information about the production and Cried Wolf Productions see the link below