REVIEW: Daniel Kitson, The Dukes

The unusual concept saw Kitson take to the stage for half an hour, chatting about his trip up north – during which he discovered his disliking for ‘posh confident people’ and a woman who wouldn’t share the arm rest on the train – as well as taking a couple of questions from the audience.

And so to the film itself, which Kitson said he would not stay to watch as it would be “a bit weird”.

The performance, It’s Always Right Now, Until It’s Later, was a recording of his show of the same name which toured several venues including the National Theatre and New York.

The film, abut tiny moments in the lives of two people, was made on one night towards the end of the show’s run at Manchester’s Royal Exchange theatre and is the entire show in real time.

The Dukes was one of just 13 venues nationwide to hopst Kitson and the screening.

It’s a clever – if somewhat initially confusing – idea, which Kitson delivers with pace and enthusiasm, and you can’t help but be drawn into the mundane minutiae of the lives of the fictional characters he is describing.

The interwoven details of a couple are revealed as the show progresses, with one person’s life story moving forwards from birth to death while the other travels in the opposite direction, both via an extremely circuitous route.

It’s fast-moving, thought-provoking and occasionally sad, but also very funny. It’s a bit of a shame Kitson didn’t hang around to see how well received his show was, but maybe he had another train to catch.