Sniff

14th – 24th May 2024

First performed at the Maltings Theatre in Hertfordshire in 2022, Sniff was selected as an ‘outstanding’ script and was performed at Theatre503, moving to a longer run at the Jack Studio in 2023.

Co-writer Gabriel Fogarty-Graveson, from St Albans, is a writer, theatre-maker and actor. He is the co-founder of Make It Beautiful Theatre Company, along with Felix Grainger, and has written and starred in a number of productions including Out of Time, during a residency at OBRA Theatre Company in the south of France, and Our Little Life at the Black Box Studio in Slovenia. Since touring their five-star hit show The CO-OP, their improv. show the Dream Machine, and working on a rural horror-play at the Norwich Theatre, Make it Beautiful Theatre Company are now focusing on their new passion project: Sniff. 

“If this was the pilot, I can’t wait for the series.”

A sparse set greets us comprising a single sink, mirror, urinal, and a sealed off toilet with graffitied doors. Posters of an Oasis tribute band, gambling sites and techno nights adorn the walls. A man in a tight-fitting grey suit and green cravat walks into the restroom of The Old Swan pub, followed by another, with a contrasting outfit – Reebok sweatshirt, joggers and red and white Adidas trainers.

They spark up a conversation around the suited man’s inability to relieve himself at the urinal and it is clear they are from different worlds. Or are they? It transpires they were in double science together at school, but have since taken very different paths in life. One — Alex (Grainger) — an advertising executive in Canary Wharf about to propose to his girlfriend, the other — Liam (Fogarty-Graveson) — a gambling addict with no real friends and a cocaine addiction, who once enjoyed the simple delights of flora and fauna as a gardener, but appears to have lost everything. Everything apart from his love of white powder. His insecurities become apparent as the play unfolds.

Throughout their interaction, we are drawn into questioning success and morality, and the very direct influence our life choices have on others. Toxic masculinity, expectation, pressure, failure; we are given an insight into both characters’ upbringings with flashbacks to their formative years, and although worlds apart, are similar in many ways. Neither seem completely satisfied with their lot, but is the grass ever greener?

An unexpected ending ties up the play effectively, taking a sinister turn. An excellent script is delivered by two outstanding actors who effortlessly ooze charisma and stage presence and provide many, many laugh out loud moments and brilliant physicality throughout the performance, along with more serious scenes which show off their versatility. There are some memorable moments including an advertising pitch based around huskies and toilet paper, and great lines such as “Some have a degree, but I have always thought you can trust nepotism.” Liam’s character has whispers of Ewan McGregor in Trainspotting or Danny Dyer in Human Traffic, and Sniff certainly has an air of the 1990s about it. It deserves all the praise it receives, and I hope we see more of Liam and Alex.

If this was the pilot, I can’t wait for the series.

Rhea Shepherd