At first Angie is audio but later she (Dakota Blue Richards) can appear on the tv screen and talk to her with independent but relevant views. Angie encourages Merril to reconnect with ex-girlfriend Raquel (Yolanda Kettle).  Angie is not a passive memory but capable of texting Raquel to initiate a meeting.   

However the program wants more information which can only come from their mother Brin (Abigail Thaw). Brin is a damaged character with a history of substance abuse, a number of failed marriages and various children. When Merril introduces her mother to the Angie program it is met with shock but the mother soon sees this as an opportunity to seek forgiveness for her failings. Brin having had her phone contents added to the program pushes it to tell her where Angie is buried.  The answer forms the second part of the play which features many spoilers.

Merril is obsessed with the Angie program and will not give it up despite her friend Raquel’s pleadings.  The irony is that the program has initiated contact with Raquel. While Brin has welcomed the recreation of Angie, Raquel is more cautious.

The actors perform well and directed by Anna Ledwich are believable. MyAnna Buring is particularly strong and she is rarely off stage.  It is the transition from algorithm to human powers which is contentious.

This play is the first of the Hampstead Theatre Winter season; without any grant funding this theatre’s choices have to be winners.   I hope this will be a good start.  I also look forward to seeing more of Lauren Gunderson’s writing staged in London.