This new play by Oliver Cotton has all the right ingredients: tension, passion, conflict, a little humour, and a few surprises.

But while the audience was engrossed for most of it, there was a feeling of dissatisfaction when it was over. The ending itself is poignant and a resolution of sorts to the conflict.

You feel you ought to care. Its core, harking back to Nazi abuse of Jews in Austrian concentration camps, is serious, important stuff.

But it’s a play whose first act, at any rate, needs some reconsideration. Elli and Joe (Maureen Lipman and Harry Shearer) are a 70-something Jewish couple in New York whose passion is ballroom dancing.

On the eve of a major competition, Joe’s brother Billy (John Bowe) walks back into their lives after 30 years unexplained absence.

Billy takes forever to get to the point of his visit and his long monologue is so tortuously and transparently contrived to build suspense that it fails to do so.

Billy has a shocking confession to make but by the time he reaches it, the shock value has been dissipated.

The script is not John Bowe’s fault, although his near hysteria for the duration of his long story had some of the audience losing patience.

The second act had some lighter moments, mostly courtesy of Maureen Lipman, who was provided with some of the double-edged Jewish one-liners which she delivers so well.

The act also fleshed out the family story with more personal revelations. To say more would give away the plot.

Harry Shearer’s is a well-controlled, measured performance and of the three, probably the most convincing.

All three actors gave it their best, but the play needs tightening to give it real impact and allow the cast to shine.