Now in its third year, the Re:Play festival is like catch-up TV for live theatre: a selection of the most eye-catching work from Manchester's fringe presented in a handy, pick-and-mix format on the library stage. The subjects on offer range from Salford squatters to homophobic bullying and a play about post-match interviews set in a player's tunnel. First up, however, is a darkly comic strangers-on-a-train scenario and an urban fairytale about a man who finds he cannot fly.
In Claire Urwin's No Wonder, young Luke climbs into his parent's wardrobe in the hope that it will lead to a land of snowy adventure, but instead gets to witness the demise of his father in a bizarre sexual role-playing accident. Cowled in a green hoodie, Edward Franklin gives a touching performance as a young boy afflicted by the trauma of seeing his dad fall to his death while dressed as Peter Pan.
Alistair McDowall's 5:30 poses the question of who you would least want to occupy the seat beside you on a train. Probably not, as in this case, a psychotic squaddie who pulls several tins of lager from his bag, followed by a large butcher's knife. Clive Judd's intense production features convincing work from Adam Caslin as the bookish victim, while you can never be sure if the cleaver-wielding Peter Ash is all talk or a man prepared to mince his words. The company requests that you do not spoil the denouement, though it's probably safe to say that it all ends in tears – it's up to you to find out what kind of tears they are.
