Jo Fong and George Orange. Photo by Sara Teresa.

The Rest of Our Lives by Jo Fong & George Orange – Battersea Arts Centre, London

In the two years since I first saw The Rest of Our Lives, the trigger notice outside the theatre with its warning of ‘middle aged content’ has started to seem slightly more relevant. The excellent Jo Fong and George Orange have been touring their show about being a certain age since the 2022 Edinburgh Festival, and it remains an absolute delight. Although clearly never quite the same from one night to the next, their performances remain recognisable, and scenes return with just as much impact as they had on first viewing. The show is a serious of set pieces which appear minimal but, on closer inspection, require both significant discipline and physical stamina. Jo and George fit themselves through the frames of metal chairs, entwine , and support one another physically, illustrating themes of interdependence without ever saying so. George sometimes look as though he’s about to do something very reckless, and everyone including Jo is relieved when he doesn’t. Nevertheless, his physical presence is powerful, as is Jo’s in a more contained way.

The Rest of Our Lives uses music in an inspired way, from Hosier’s ‘Take Me to the Church’ which supplies ironic drama to Rage Against the Machine’s ‘Killing in the Name Of’, which the pair simply grimace along to, until Jo eventually bursts out with the single ‘motherfucker’ in the chorus. It’s very funny. The show is also an unusual shared experience, into which the audience is happy to throw themselves. A mass game of ping pongs using several bags of balls and lot of bats gets everyone in the mood and then the surtitles that seem to be in charge of the show open up the stage to the audience. It becomes an increasingly sweaty disco as pretty much everyone gets stuck in to some tunes well-chosen for the 40s plus demographic. It’s remarkably cathartic, and Jo and George have lighted upon something with their instinctive audience connection. The Rest of Our Lives is subtle and experimental, but also accessible and joyous – a rare combination.