Leslie Black PhotographyDiane lives at the very top of Scotland, at the highest point of her town. Read more …
She used to curse the big climb - the Beefy Brae, the 8 flights of stairs - but now she leaves that to her foul mouthed daughter, Christine. As far as Diane is concerned this is the best and safest place to be - safe from stones through the window, prying eyes, dust, damp, dog hair, disease. And on the day the flood hits she couldn't be further from its reach. But when Mary turns up, soaked and bleeding at the door, Diane's flat becomes a very dangerous place indeed.
If the 45 minute play that follows doesn’t quite match the deep resonances of that opening scene, it’s still sustained with terrific intensity, in Hamish Pirie’s haunting production.
It is lovely to see themes of paranoia and survivor’s guilt with strong female characterisation in a beautifully-written ominous piece, often played out in real time, which does not trade on stereotypes or pat behaviour. 3 Seconds is troubled theatre for our troubled generation.
While this is a dark and sometimes unsettling opener to the season, it is quality stuff and marks a very welcome return for a Play, a Pie and a Pint’s brand of lunchtime theatre to the Traverse.
Hamish Pirie’s direction felt tight as a drum skin, though never obtrusively so, and Patrick McGurn’s design never obtrudes, leaving us to focus fully on an almost perfect gem of a play.
Tense, terse and tight, Lesley Hart’s 3 Seconds makes a powerful and sometimes unsettling start to the Traverse Theatre’s spring season of A Play, a Pie and a Pint lunchtime shows.
A Play, a Pie and a Pint, Glasgow from Monday February 11, 2013, until Saturday February 16, 2013. More info: http://playpiepint.com
Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh from Tuesday February 19, 2013, until Saturday February 23, 2013. More info: www.traverse.co.uk
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