The obituary in question is that of the migrant mother of three Chinese siblings, and the play deals with the decisions her children must make in dealing with the disposal of the family home where they grew up.
They do this by completing a detailed property report to a very short deadline. The process of doing so brings back conflicting memories of their childhood and parents.
This is a new play by Xinyu Lu, premiering at the Jack Studio Theatre. It is simply and stylistically staged, with the acting area demarcated by a white border, with representations of items wrapped for disposal. The floor is covered with sand and blank pieces of paper, used by the cast to represent photographs and artefacts to prompt their memories.
The three actors, Kevin Ip, Chen Xu and Yijia Gong were of Chinese origin and spoke with Chinese accents, which occasionally affected audibility but gave a sense of authenticity to the presentation. The staging made a feature of live camera feeds of the actors talking in front of the audience, but I was unsure that this added much to having the actors just talk direct to the audience. The action was accompanied by live electric guitar music which added greatly to the sense of atmosphere.
The main issue being addressed by the play is the extent to which places, in this case the family home, are necessary as an anchor for memory, and for establishing the basis for familial relationships. It resonated because all of us will have thought back to places where we were brought up but will probably also have passed houses where we once lived which now mean nothing to us.
I found the 60 minutes of the presentation very engaging but did not feel that it came to a very satisfactory conclusion. I think some further work on the text to bring out more of the key messages would make this a very good production.
The Obituary Is playing at the Jack Studio Theatre until 9th September and then at the Bridge House Theatre on 10th September. Tickets are available from www.brockleyjack.co.uk and www.thebridgehousetheatre.co.uk.
Reviewer: Paul Ackroyd
Reviewed: 8th September 2026
North West End UK Rating: