Review: Starfish

📍 Bread and Roses Theatre

🗓️ 12th November 2025

🎟️ PR Invite

Written by Richard Fitchett, Starfish follows Tim and Cheryl, a couple who return home one evening to an unsettling surprise — the smell of food cooking, dishes freshly washed, and a toilet flushing upstairs. Fearing an intruder, Tim grabs a cricket bat, only to find Eric (Peter Saracen), a homeless man who’s found a key and let himself in.

Agreeing to let Eric stay one night, Tim (Ed Jobling) and Cheryl’s (Emma Riches) plans soon spiral when he refuses to leave, turning a brief act of kindness into a chaotic arrangement that lasts for weeks.

As the play unfolds, we learn more about the couple — their charitable instincts, comfortable life, and fondness for wine… and beige walls. Most scenes take place in their house, with the set briefly transforming into a pub where we meet Karin (Lisa Minichiello), Cheryl’s best friend.

Cheryl becomes increasingly curious about Eric’s story — where he came from, what happened to his family, and why he chose their home. One particularly poignant scene, where Eric sits in silence recalling flashbacks from his past, hits hard.

Fitchett balances humour and emotion well, with moments of tension supported by comedy. Much of the humour comes from Karin (who doesn’t appear in many scenes), while Eric’s love of ABBA adds light-heartedness to the story.

At 90 minutes, the play didn’t really need an interval — running straight through might have kept the momentum stronger. Scene changes, though consistent with music, slightly disrupted the flow.

Starfish has plenty of thoughtful ideas and strong performances but doesn’t always reach the emotional depth it aims for. Still, the starfish metaphor ties it together nicely, and the cast create a believable atmosphere while exploring themes of homelessness, compassion, and how fear of judgement can shape our actions.