Sam McTannan is just a typical 15-year old, with one exception. Sam is a Superhero! He can literally turn See-Thru when it suits him, only today something is wrong. In Superhero comics, they would call it a blip. Sam's powers are failing him and the people he doesn't want to see him start paying a little bit too much attention.
The story of an ordinary boy with an extraordinary life. A heart-breaking, life-affirming comedy about life, love and being a total loser. Read more …
The production is not as funny as you might expect, partly because the coming-of-age story is more familiar than subversive, but it does build to a touching and surprisingly tragic conclusion.
There's potty-mouthed gallows humour in McKnight's script that lifts things beyond sentiment in a powerfully observed study of adolescent angst. As Sam reaches for the stars, unable to reconcile himself with real life, McKnight has dreamed up an awfully big adventure well worth taking the leap.
The technical skill involved in conjuring up Jamie’s sketched-in world, and co-ordinating it with the movement of the three actors, is often breathtaking.
McKnight, presumably, set out to create an emotive comedy about teenage bereavement. What he has ended up with is a play which is most notable for its use of naughty words. And that, as any teacher will tell you, is neither big nor clever.
The balance between fantasy and reality is clear to begin with, but as the play progresses towards its tragic end, of which the audience are warned at the beginning, the superhero metaphor becomes blurred.
If it weren’t for McKnight’s gleefully potty-mouthed script, you might be mistake it for a family show (and it’s undeniably teen-friendly), but his subtle refusal to cast things in black and white ensures that it feels like a far more adult affair.
This is a Kerpow! of a show dealing with love, death, grief, loss and trying to be ‘normal’, whatever that is.
Johnny McKnight discusses The Incredible Adventures of See Thru Sam
Theatre preview.
Tron Theatre, Glasgow from Thursday September 20, 2012, until Saturday September 29, 2012. More info: www.tron.co.uk
macrobert, Stirling on Friday October 5, 2012. More info: www.macrobert.org
Dundee Rep Theatre, Dundee on Tuesday October 9, 2012. More info: www.dundeereptheatre.co.uk
Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh from Thursday October 18, 2012, until Saturday October 20, 2012. More info: www.traverse.co.uk
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