Music isn’t always the food of love, with the world of professional musicians as riddled with fierce competition as any performative media. Writer Clé Holly has created a serious drama about the sudden change of personnel in a string quartet with Melissa Folzenlogen playing Kiki, a violinist who accepts a fresh role in the quartet to replace the missing member. The remaining three are under the command of manager Hassim (Bong Cabrera), but none of them give her a warm reception, and she wants to know exactly why . . . 

Four has a novelty hook: some of the performers can actually play their instruments, which adds a certain verisimilitude. The tunes providing a soundtrack to the on-going strife range from Beethoven to Beyoncé, but a lack of sharp definition between characters and unclear time frames mean that Four feels over-ambitious. Coming off like a work in progress, the piece certainly has a good idea at the core, but a bit of narrative expansion is required before this drama is ready for opening night.

Four, Gilded Balloon Teviot, until 28 August, 12.45pm.