Jerker

Some plays capture a moment in history; others make you remember exactly what it felt like to live through it. Jerker by Robert Chelsey at Waterloo East Theatre does both. It’s writing is sharp and witty and a beautiful observation of men struggling to find their way in troubled times.

For any gay man who lived through the AIDS crisis, the play resonates deeply. It captures the fear, isolation and uncertainty, but, more importantly, it captures the very human need for intimacy and connection when the world outside feels increasingly hostile and frightening. That sense of lived experience gives the play an emotional authenticity that stays with long after you leave the theatre.

What makes Jerker particularly effective is the clever way in which it’s central relationship develops. JR (Paul Dennison) is initially driven to track down and contact a chance encounter of his, Bert (James Lee), for phone sex, with little expectation that it will be anything more than physical gratification. Yet almost imperceptibly the nature of their phone encounters shifts. The anonymity begins to fall away, and what begins as sexual fantasies develop into something much deeper; trust, companionship, vulnerability and genuine affection.

The play handles these transitions beautifully thanks to clear characterisations from the actors, who are totally watchable. There is humour and tenderness alongside darker discussions, making their growing connection feel totally enthralling. Which then makes the inevitable shattering of that relationship, all the more devastating.

Jerker is an intimate and deeply human story about how people seek connection in the most unlikely circumstances. It is truly moving without being sentimental, and it’s simplicity of structure is one of its greatest strengths. Director, Henry Adams has cleverly given encounter its own drive and means that the play is totally engrossing for its full 90-minute length.

This is one of those times when restaging a play written in the 1980’s has as much resonance and impact now as it must have had back then. Distance has if anything made it even more powerful