Michael Cox reviews En Route, Roadkill, Imperial Fizz and Cargo.
This weekend was more about experience than anything. Four productions, and only one of them fit the classical archetype of ‘theatre’.
First up was En Route (****), a piece created by an Australian group who are here via the Traverse. Whether this fits into the categories of theatre, art installation or just guided tour, I’m not quite sure. As it is a piece about discovery, to tell you anything that happens would be cheating.
But I can tell you what it is: a 90-minute walk around the city. You will traverse streets, alleys, closes, shops and end up...somewhere. You will be guided by messages on your mobile and an iPod, which not only plays snippets of descriptions and conversations but also music from local musicians. The walk is actually quite lengthy and at times hard going, so bring appropriate clothing and footwear.
The funny thing is that I’m still not sure if it was constructed to ‘be’ about anything. I found the dialogue pedestrian, even counterproductive at times to my experience of exploring places of Edinburgh I hadn’t been. I enjoyed looking at people, graffiti and the like and wondering if they were all in on it or not, and I had some great experiences. So, was it theatre? Really, who cares, because what it is, if anything, is an absolute hoot.
What is certainly not a hoot is Roadkill (****). The play is a site-specific piece that looks at sex trafficking through the abuse of a young Nigerian girl.
It is a harrowing production that is almost unforgettable. Expertly directed by Cora Bissett, the play uses a combination of text, images and projections to tell its angry tale, and it is all brilliantly handled.
It is also brilliantly performed. John Kazek has the difficult job of playing multiple roles, from a bumbling john to the scumbag who’s orchestrated the whole operation, and Adura Onashile is compelling as the madam in charge of the girls. But this will be remembered for Mercy Ojelade. Her character Mary is called upon to perform some of the most difficult acts I’ve ever seen an actor directed to do, and she is stunning.
It is political theatre at its best, and anyone who wouldn’t want to help Mary at the end of the play can no longer call themselves human.
Onto a more ‘humane’ production: Imperial Fizz (***). The play is a light-hearted look at a couple stuck in purgatory, forever in a cycle of drink mixing, play acting and clever one-upmanship.
The title really does say it all. It is well directed and performed with comedic gusto but amounts to little more than a pleasant, and soon forgettable, fizz. Still, it is pleasant enough and anyone who chooses to see it should have a fun time.
When making my plans in July, the Sunday was orchestrated to be a long day at the Assembly Rooms. However, a mixture of exhaustion and an overgrown back garden made me cull the day to one production out at Leith: Cargo (***).
Expectation can be a funny thing. I’d only glanced at the particulars of this production and, with its theme of migration and use of shipping crates, I’d assumed it would be another social drama about illegal immigration.
Wrong! It is instead a colourful fable with plucky heroes and evil pirates, all told on ships that are pushed around the audience on carts.
And it is all a lot of fun. More of a pleasant romp, the play had me smiling from beginning to end. It was always interesting to watch, well performed and staged, and it also had a great live band. Oh, and make sure you take the offered poncho because water is involved, and you may get wet.
That’s it for the weekend. Monday sees me running around between the Pleasance Courtyard and the Zoo Southside.
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