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The New Theatre, with its entrance from the left-wing Connolly Books, is an ideal location for Oliver Eagleton’s witty, if at times indulgent, play, According to His Need. Fresh from the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, the plot revolves around two characters, Cass and Nick, who develop a relationship when Nick uses left wing politics as a platform to meet women and Cass embraces his ploy to bring him further into the world of Marxist theory.

The play has a slow start, beginning with an unnecessary pre-set, and Michael-David McKernan’s portrayal of the awkward and quirky Nick only comes into its own when the dialogue begins with Cass. Throughout the play there is a balanced and effective use of lighting in the simple staging — a spot-light shining on Nick — as Cass analyses their interactions and her intentions; sharp blackouts punctuate change of scenes.

Nora Kelly Lester’s directing and Eagleton’s writing shine in the charming tongue-in-cheek scene where Nick and Cass combine Marxist theory in their sex life, with Hanna Tucker Mamali’s and McKernans’s comedic abilities coming to life. Tucker Mamali’s Cass is suitably cold and strong, yet she still manages to exude chemistry and flare in her interactions with Nick.

At times, Eagleton’s parodying of the often futile and elitist nature of left wing political action becomes inherently pretentious itself and while there is intent and power in his use of exaggeration, it often lacks any relatable sense of humanness or reality. However, this is overcome in the sweet and sentimental final scenes in which politics is stripped away and we see that at heart this is fundamentally an unlikely love story. The genuinely funny satire and perhaps the ability to see one’s own effete use of theory or academic writing makes this a great evening for any Trinity student.

According to His Need runs at the New Theatre until November 1.