AN award-winning production of John Godber's April in Paris returned to the Pump House this week, offering audiences in Watford another chance to see local talent at its best.

The production, produced and performed by members of the Pump House Theatre Company, has already won several awards at three local theatre festivals.

And following its tremendous success, the company wisely decided to use the show to launch their new season of productions.

Combining sharp wit with genuinely touching moments, the company's presentation of this two-hander was warmly received by the audience on Thursday, September 22.

Liz Peskin as Bet and Stephen Wells as her husband, Al, were perfectly cast as the husband and wife team who lead a mundane and penniless lifestyle, which has left them with little hope of a happy future together.

Al keeps busy with his painting, while Bet occupies her time reading women's magazines and entering competitions.

Their conversation is limited and their relationship seems to be all but dead. Until they win a trip to Paris that is.

Their trip to the most romantic city in the world gives the couple a chance to reassess their relationship and rediscover their love.

Both Liz and Stephen gave excellent performances, sustaining difficult northern accents throughout.

Despite a shaky start, the pair soon warmed up, keeping the show alive with brilliant comic timing and moments of pure entertainment, including some painfully embarrassing dancing at a disco.

Al's outburst on the metro as he protects himself from potential muggers was brilliantly performed by Stephen, and his Union Jack t-shirt reminded us constantly that he was a British tourist through and through.

Both performers conveyed the struggle of a pair who are desperate to feel part of a new culture, but who clearly belong in their uneventful, but safe northern lives.

Though it's hard to imagine that anyone could feel so frightened in a culture which is not so different from our own, the play's protagonists are a clear reminder that there are those who clearly just don't know anything other than the life they lead.

And although we laugh as the pair run from a cafe because they can't bear to order, it is with an underlying sense of embarrassment and pity.

What really worked in this production was the minimalist set, with just two chairs being used to represent different parts of the action.

Sometimes they represented the deck of a ship, other times they became a look-out level on the Eiffel Tower but the audience always believed it.

Director Alan Cox and his team should be congratulated on a production which hits all the right buttons and is a perfect start to the company's new season.