Unburied
Waterloo East Theatre
Reviewed – 10th March 2018
★★★★★
“perfectly strikes the balance between terror and comedy”
Hermetic Arts ‘Unburied’ was absolutely terrifying and brilliantly hilarious. It follows Carrie Marx (playing herself), as she tries to uncover the mystery of what really happened to the tapes from a cursed 70s kids TV show called ‘Unburied’. Carrie is in the midst of creating a podcast on the subject, after spending the past year researching it, and has allowed the audience to attend whilst she records it. Marx explains every element of her research and takes you on a journey, spanning centuries, as she details everything that she has found.
Marx is incredibly talented, her character is entirely real and likeable. She completely captivates the audience, armed with only a microphone and PowerPoint presentation. Her quest for information and to find out the truth is hilarious, and she perfectly manages the atmosphere of the theatre. One moment we are delivered a witty anecdote, the next we are being completely terrified by an audio recording from hundreds of years ago. The performance perfectly strikes the balance between terror and comedy, not taking itself too seriously but all the while slowly building up to a dramatic end.
The set was minimal: a desk at which Marx records her podcast, and a screen projected behind her that she uses to illustrate her story. The Waterloo East Theatre is small, and perfectly suited for this show. The rumbling of passing trains perfectly adding to the atmosphere as Marx reveals more information on everything she has learnt. The soundtrack was subtle but completely fitting with the theme of the performance, and the use of audio recordings made the story all the more realistic.
I never thought I would be completely enthralled by the retelling of a quest to find some missing tapes, but ‘Unburied’ certainly ticks all of the boxes; it’s funny, scary, deeply captivating and completely unpredictable.
Reviewed by Charlotte Cox
Unburied
Waterloo East Theatre
Related
B.A.D.D. | ★★★★ | Old Red Lion Theatre | October 2017
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