David Eldridge’s adaptation of the first Dogme film has been revived with care, intelligence and excellent acting.

With authentic details such as the real food served and eaten on stage, one thinks of naturalism, but just as black and white photography seems to show gritty reality while obviously distorting it, so the drama is intensified here.

The revelation that threatens to undermine the complacency of Helge (Tony Dart, quietly mesmerising) during his 60th birthday celebration has its shock value, but is all too familiar these days, and is not explored with any great subtlety.

What is gripping is the tension between the formality of the occasion and the high emotions.

Ham Quentin