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It begins one fateful afternoon down by the canal when Kenny and Kelly, two ordinary kids, steal Adrian Dunfor's kite and their game goes horribly wrong...

Frog Man: "Pythonesque"

Originally written and devised back in 2004, Frog Man is the result of a creative partnership of Bradford playwright Mick Martin and Hothouse Theatre's former artistic director Jude Wright. The play recently garnered rave reviews at the Edinburgh Festival and is currently being toured by Mick and Jude as a showcase piece for their new theatre company, Bent Architect. I went along to their most recent performance at the weekend to dip my toe in the water and take in the Frog Man.

The play opens with the idealistic couple Kenny and Kelly gushing about their near perfect lives.ΜύKelly proudly shares her pride of being a domestic goddess, while her adoring husband Kenny extols the pleasures of marriage, a 4x4 and the successful career. Their lives carry all the required symbols of success and comfort. A series of flashbacks uncover moments from their youth and it's here that we meet a rather curious boy called Adrian Dunfor. His relationship with Kelly and Kenny will later prove to be a major theme within the plot. Meanwhile, the next door neighbour Malcom Glazebrook has taken to dropping in, mainly to for a bit of salsa with Kelly! Malcolm's arrival heralds a subtle change within the play and from here things become somewhat tangled and...well...aquatic.

Frog Man is not just about the laughs, though. It is a wryly observed social commentary. It explores dark and disturbing aspects of childhood that we as adults avoid or choose to ignore, the suggestion that we will preserve an idealised view of those things we regard as sacred at any cost. It's also about the lies and subterfuge that haunt many relationships. Kenny is secretly fearful of losing Kelly but covers it up by being ridiculously optimistic about a future that is increasingly uncertain. Kelly is also completely wrapped up in her own world, sinking ever deeper into a state of complete denial.Μύ

Frog Man: "Hilarious & energetic!"

Another central theme of the play is control. It is interesting to watch the shift of power between Kenny and Kelly. On the one hand we see Kelly dance with abandon leaving us in no doubt that she is a sexual being, free. Kenny meanwhile perpetually hammers home the fact that he is a model citizen, a valued member of the constabulary. How sad that he is far too hung up to join his wife for an occasional tango or foxtrot on some idle Tuesday afternoon! Eventually we realise that Kelly does not inhabit the rarified air of domestic goddess, that Kenny's glaring imperfections are his downfall. Both characters are running from that horrible and dark event in their childhood that now threatens to destroy the very fabric of their existences.

Frog Man is a hilarious, energetic, well observed social commentary. A well-acted comedy, black as you like and very thought provoking. A great piece of surrealist theatre from a new and innovative theatre company.