The emotional struggle to convince aging parents it’s time they moved into a care home is a sadly common story these days. Less common is having a legendary movie star as a mother.

Hove-based playwright, Gail Louw, showed us the conflict between film icon Marlene Dietrich and her daughter in the final days of her life.

Lying bedridden in dirty sheets and addicted to alcohol and drugs, Dietrich constantly relives her glamorous past and fights against the realities of her faded beauty and ailing body.

Actress Elizabeth Counsell depicted a difficult woman, moving from childish self-pity to monstrous egotism, an impressive performance as she remained static in the squalid bed throughout the 90 minutes.

The script delivered a potted history of Dietrich’s life, her (many) loves and numerous flaws as a mother. This was interesting but so many facts in such little time resulted in lists of events rather than believable dialogue. Less content in a longer play may have examined the emotions and tensions between the two women better.

‘Miss Dietrich Regrets’ was fascinating and sparked one’s curiosity to read daughter Maria Riva’s tell-all biography but as a one-act play it was too intense to be an easy watch.

Elizabeth Hughes