Anna Burnside reviews a well-intentioned production.
In 1856 New York, Eunice discovers the greenhouse effect but can’t get the scientific establishment to take her seriously because she’s a lady.
London, 2027, and Claire, who runs conferences for Greenpeace, is falling in love to a backdrop of floods and fires.
And in 2100, at the Svalbard seed bank, Ana is looking for a strain of wheat that can withstand the extremes of the climate.
This is a strong premise for a play, but writer Flora Wilson Brown makes a lot of assumptions about the audience’s knowledge. Tying the three strands together makes a powerful overarching point but it also leaves a lot of gaps.
The science bit of Eunice’s work feels rushed and the point is more about the prejudice she faces as an amateur and a woman than the substance of her research.
It’s not a coincidence that, while Eunice struggles to be seen as more than a novelty turn, Ana is the lead scientist in a world-class institution. The ending, while not exactly happy, is at least optimistic.
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The Beautiful Future Is Coming performs at the Traverse Theatre (Traverse One) until August 24, 2025. For performance times and details, go to the company’s website.
Photo by Aly Wight.
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