Pleasance Theatre Archives - Page 23 of 31

Don’t Look Away

Pleasance Theatre

Reviewed – 8th May 2019

★★★½

“From exposing the realities faced by asylum seekers to prompting us into self-interrogation, Chapman has created a show firmly rooted in compassion”

The refugee crisis has been a constant in the public consciousness for many years; predictably, it has now become a mainstay in the arts. High profile plays like The Jungle have given us access to personal stories that are all too often lost in the midst of statistics and fleeting front pages.

Grace Chapman’s Don’t Look Away is the latest addition to the genre. The personal story in question is that of Adnan, an eighteen year old boy seeking asylum in the UK. His journey from Aleppo to Bradford was 4500 miles long: much to his dismay, it isn’t even close to being over.

But Adnan is not our protagonist. That would be Cath: the cleaning lady who takes him in on his first night in the country and becomes gradually all the more involved in his story. The Home Office aside, the play’s antagonist is Jamie, Cath’s entitled son, who feels confused and threatened by his mother’s investment in Adnan’s life.

Chapman was inspired to write the play after members of her family began housing asylum seekers. Whilst she may simply have sought to write about her own experiences, she simultaneously found an interesting way to re-tell and re-interrogate an oft-told story. She exposes the stark reality of seeking asylum, the ways in which the system is stacked against Adnan in unimaginable ways. It also explores the ways in which we as individuals respond to global crises. Jamie believes that Cath is in over her head, but Cath strives to do more. It is interesting to consider her motivations for doing so: despite the fact that her actions are genuine, she seems to be using this situation to compensate for the lost connection between herself and Jamie. The interplay between Cath the failed mother and Cath the determined friend makes her a well-rounded character, saving her from becoming the dreaded White Saviour. All three characters leap off the page with force. Julia Barrie attentively explores Cath’s fragility in addition to her resilience, whilst Brian Fletcher is nicely detestable as Jamie. Robert Hannouch is bold and charismatic as Adnan, full of hope and energy that makes him a pleasure to watch.

For me the flaws in this production come from its staging. The movement sequences (save the one at the beginning) add little and feel clunky, fracturing the play’s tight structure for no good reason. The translucent curtain at the back of the set takes away from the overall sparseness; I wish it was used in more creative and expressive ways. The ending does feel somewhat unbelievable, which is a shame as it undercuts the subtlety of the preceding scenes. These are quite minor problems, yet they do inhibit the production in significant and unavoidable ways.

Don’t Look Away isn’t the perfect play, yet it is undoubtedly important. From exposing the realities faced by asylum seekers to prompting us into self-interrogation, Chapman has created a show firmly rooted in compassion.

Reviewed by Harriet Corke

Photography by Ryan Cowan

Don’t Look Away

Pleasance Theatre until 18th May

Last ten shows reviewed at this venue:

Aid Memoir | ★★★ | October 2018

One Duck Down | ★★★★★ | October 2018

The Archive of Educated Hearts | ★★★★ | October 2018

Call Me Vicky | ★★★ | February 2019

Neck Or Nothing | ★★★★ | April 2019

Night Of The Living Dead Live | ★★★ | April 2019

Click here to see more of our latest reviews on thespyinthestalls.com

★★★★

“They balance sincerity and comedy throughout, allowing the audience a laugh even when the situation is heartbreakingly hopeless”

With a title like that and a poster of a lone bear standing tall and magnificent (in a space suit), it would be easy to assume the general plot outline – quirky man goes for gold, sacrifices everything, comes out victorious. The American dream is real, people! You just have to sacrifice everything! And apparently buy a space suit. And be a bear…

‘Neck or Nothing’ follows the story of Jens (James Murfitt), a man with a dream to make the ultimate contribution to humankind; to be the hero the world needs. And he plans on doing this whilst living in his brother Frank’s garage, being funded by his wife Martha (Katy Daghorn) who pulls double shifts at a failing bakery.

Co-writers and directors Christopher Neels and Callum Cameron have created a character with all the trappings of a victorious underdog: obsessive single-mindedness, a plan that seems completely ridiculous, a loving family whose faith begins to waver, and a small town that laughs at his brilliance. But rather than taking it to its Rocky Balboa conclusion, instead they highlight the sad reality of this trope, and of the inevitable damage caused by self-inflicted isolation, and toxic masculinity in general.

Murfitt, Daghorn and North all deliver enthusiastic and engaging performances. They balance sincerity and comedy throughout, allowing the audience a laugh even when the situation is heartbreakingly hopeless. Their characters are all surprisingly fleshed out – another twist on the classic underdog story, where all other characters beside the lead are usually kept in soft-focus.

Costume and set design (Sophia Pardon) are efficient but good fun – the star of the show is of course Jens’ ‘invention’- a home-made ‘ironman’ costume, cupcake tray serving well as a steel six-pack and cycling knee pads making excellent superhero-square shoulders. The video and lighting design (Rachel Sampley) does well to create various spaces on a small stage without overcomplicating and distracting from the main event.

In all, Neels and Cameron have succeeded in creating an off-beat comedy with just enough heart to get their message across, but not so much that you want to look away for sheer embarrassment. I look forward to seeing what Fledgling Theatre Co do next.

Reviewed by Miriam Sallon

Photography by Veronika Casarova

Pleasance Theatre

Reviewed – 8th May 2019

★★★½

“From exposing the realities faced by asylum seekers to prompting us into self-interrogation, Chapman has created a show firmly rooted in compassion”

The refugee crisis has been a constant in the public consciousness for many years; predictably, it has now become a mainstay in the arts. High profile plays like The Jungle have given us access to personal stories that are all too often lost in the midst of statistics and fleeting front pages.

Grace Chapman’s Don’t Look Away is the latest addition to the genre. The personal story in question is that of Adnan, an eighteen year old boy seeking asylum in the UK. His journey from Aleppo to Bradford was 4500 miles long: much to his dismay, it isn’t even close to being over.

Don’t Look Away isn’t the perfect play, yet it is undoubtedly important. From exposing the realities faced by asylum seekers to prompting us into self-interrogation, Chapman has created a show firmly rooted in compassion.

Reviewed by Harriet Corke

Photography by Ryan Cowan

Don’t Look Away

Pleasance Theatre until 18th May

Last ten shows reviewed at this venue:

Pleasance Theatre

Reviewed – 26th April 2019

★★★★

“They balance sincerity and comedy throughout, allowing the audience a laugh even when the situation is heartbreakingly hopeless”

In all, Neels and Cameron have succeeded in creating an off-beat comedy with just enough heart to get their message across, but not so much that you want to look away for sheer embarrassment. I look forward to seeing what Fledgling Theatre Co do next.

Reviewed by Miriam Sallon

Photography by Veronika Casarova

Neck or Nothing

Pleasance Theatre until 4th May

Previously reviewed at this venue:

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