REVIEW: Holy Matrimony, LSESU Drama Society, EdFringe 2025 ★★★

What happens if a group of young church-goers meet at their church for an evening of speed dating in hopes to find their partner for life? And what happens if each of them is hiding something behind the mask of faith? Alison Enright’s quick and witty scriptwriting debut with a cast of eight highlights themes of identity in sharp contrast with conservative religion and implied expectations. 

Archetypal characters populate the otherwise minimalist setting. The highly devoted, the priest, the young musician, the snappy academic, the closeted lesbian – they all have the same thing in common, this is their church, their community and there is a sense of belonging and comfort amongst them. Their secrets however cannot stay hidden for long, tension rises as the night progresses and among other surprises, even the Saint Francis of Assisi makes an appearance. 

The very young ensemble cast made of London School of Economics students take on the task of delivering Enright’s brilliant wordplay faith jokes with dignity and near perfect comic timing. This comedy element lightens other themes that the play is almost too afraid to confront on a deeper level – queerness of the characters, their loneliness or fear of coming out. These themes are addressed only on the surface level and they’re not allowed to reach and fully affect the audience. The opposite would add a layer to the play which could provide the audience with more than just a laugh – it would offer insight and commentary of the religious machinery of the church and the characters could become fully rounded as opposed to archetypal or – at times – almost parodical. 

In line with the minimalism of the set design of the play go also other design elements. The most prominent is the plate of cream buns and though every character is presented at the beginning of the play with a “core” prop, they’re later discarded and not used to further characterise or define the world of the play. This is a missed opportunity to deepen the characters and might also aid the performances. 

Not much about this play, except for the references in the script, let us believe we’re in the church. A simple change in the sound design would fix this – let us immerse ourselves deeper in the story or even becoming one of the speed daters. 

This ensemble piece relies heavily on the performances of the young company and while their comic timing and landing of the jokes are highly successful, heavier focus on creating the world and allowing their characters to be vulnerable instead of just entertaining would also make their acting journey easier. The play explores young people’s different kinds of relationships to faith and religion, however it doesn’t offer much variety in ways the characters are dealing with underlying issues like coming out to their religious family or confronting the lack of honest faith. 

Holy Matrimony is an exploration of youthful take on religion, ups and downs of faith, lies and profoundly human wish for love. Light and fun show to see after lunch on the Mile! 

Recommended Drink: A nice chilled glass of milk.

Performances of Holy Matrimony have now concluded at EdFringe 2025.