JADAR

Sheila’s Island, by Tim Firth, crops up on Salford’s shores, transforming the Kings Arms into a corporate shipwreck. The theatre’s new resident company – affectionately dubbed The Kings – presents this production as part of an ambitious 2026 season.

It is, in fact, the owners of The Kings Arms themselves who take the helm of this production; Colin Connor directs, while Lisa Connor joins the ensemble on stage. Beyond this single staging, the Connors have undoubtedly been changing the scene in terms of Manchester’s theatrical offerings, allowing space for local companies and groups to create bold and new work within its beloved walls.

That intimate knowledge of the space is clear from the first entrance. The theatre has been radically reimagined, draped in earthy fabrics with rocks and debris scattered across the floor. It feels as if we, too, have been shipwrecked. The story follows a team-building sailing trip to the Lake District that turns sideways, stranding four women in middle-management roles on an island. The performers stagger onto the stage drenched, wringing out their clothes as they introduce their predicament; a frantic scramble of blame and navigation that sets an exciting, high-stakes tempo for the drama and comedy to ensue.

Sheila (Emma Laidlaw) is the expedition’s captain, confidently leading the group further astray while holding onto her last shreds of hope for the team building expedition. Laidlaw portrays this ‘toxic positivity’ with brilliant control, expertly toeing the line between optimism and mania. She finds a sharp foil in the narcissistic Denise (Jenny Jordan-O’Neill), who provides the lion’s share of the script’s one-liners. At times, Jordan-O’Neill lacked the steely confidence required for such a brash character; several joke setups misfired, dampening the impact of a role that demands total, unwavering credence.

It is the subtler half of the group that leaves the most lasting impression. Julie (Lisa Connor) and Fay (Fiona Boylan) offer understated performances that evolve beautifully as the isolation takes its toll. Boylan, as the religious Fay recovering from a breakdown, is a force, moving through peaks of heart-aching emotion and humour with incredible precision. Her monologues about birds and faith give the production a bewitching, poetic edge.

There is real beauty when Fay spots a rare falcon, suspended above the stage behind gauze as if perched high in the canopy, with sunlight shining behind her. It is here that Colin Connor’s direction truly sings, finding moments of light within the dark comedy – though this element is strained later when several performers are crowded above in the same elevated position.

Connor’s island isn’t all paradise: while the first act is remarkably tight, the direction seems to lose its footing in the second half. As the group verges on insanity, fuelled by hunger and exhaustion, the play takes a macabre turn that doesn’t meet the same rigorous control of the opening.

Furthermore, the thrust staging is not always used to the production’s advantage; there are long stretches where performers have their backs turned to entire sections of the audience.

Sheila’s Island still proves that The Kings are a gem in the Greater Manchester theatre scene. If the momentum currently wavers towards the end, the strength of the first act suggests a production that merely needs a few performances to settle. It remains a bold, atmospheric piece of theatre; one that promises much for the company’s residency at the Kings Arms.

Sheila’s Island runs at The Kings Arms until February 21.