Despite solid performances by an ensemble of five, The UnderNeath is an overlong and underdeveloped investigation into guilt and responsibility. Using an Aristotelian pattern (unity of plot, place and time), the script places four people in the afterlife where they are forced to analyse their greatest regret. But after taking too long to establish their identities, each character follows the same therapeutic process to discover that regret, losing the potential power of each revelation, and over-emphasising the play’s message about the importance of self-understanding.

The abstract world of the play is detailed but never quite coherent, adding in elements that explain the situation but are ultimately unconvincing. Meanwhile, the lives of each character grapple with an intriguing conundrum, and they feel over-familiar and underdeveloped. With echoes of Sartre’s Huis Clos and psychoanalysis, The UnderNeath is a little underwhelming. The bare stage and limited lighting is effectively mysterious and the actors inhabit their characters, giving energy to a script that spends much time on making the allusive explicit. This production never takes advantage of the tautness that its tragic structure offers. 

The UnderNeath, C Aquila, until 24 August, 2.55pm.