AN AGEING communist and her hippy grandson seek solace together in Amy Herzog's Odd Couple for the 21st century.


Leo turns up at his 91-year-old grandmother Vera's New York apartment in the middle of the night, fresh from cycling 4,000 miles from his home in Seattle.

It is soon clear the epic journey has been a soul searching trip for the 21-year-old - a search that has many miles left to run.

Having cut off communications with the rest of his family, he slowly opens up to Vera, revealing details of his traumatic journey, and the unlikely flatmates form a close but fragile bond.

Both find themselves at a crossroads in life. Vera is coming to terms with a faltering mind and body, while Leo feels himself drifting apart from his friends and family as he enters adulthood.

Having distanced themselves from those closest to them - Leo isn't returning his mother's calls and Vera only communicates with her one friend across the hall by phone - they slowly come to rely one another.

This is a gentle play, with the sound of whirring wheels punctuating each scene - a nice touch by director James Dacre - like the churning of thoughts in Leo and Vera's minds.

Sara Kestelman is impressive as skittish but doting grandmother Vera, while Daniel Boyd is a compelling mix of easy charm and unsettling bluntness.

There are some very funny moments, most notably Leo's Googled eulogy for a woman he never met and Vera's recollections of sexual encounters past, which have her grandson squirming in his seat.

Unfortunately it drifts for too long in a low gear, without really getting anywhere. To continue the cycling analogy, it's like a flat stage of the Tour de France in which the riders spend their time sizing each another up with no one prepared to make a move.

4000 Miles is at the Print Room, in Notting Hill, until June 1.