Is this thing on? Can you all hear me? Welcome back to another review here at StageSideUK, this time we are taking a look at an audio play by Tom Powell.
The Review
This audio play features an interaction between two individuals who seem to meet after some unfortunate events. The two individuals have a door step chat about life, death, addiction, trauma and their histories.
In a good way, where do I start with this piece? With some great musical interludes / transitions, this play gets you going with some rock riffs and has you hooked. The lines allow enough time for the play to breathe without the pauses being awkward. This script does a great job at giving you just enough, giving the audience enough detail to be able to visualise the action without spending too much time focusing on the small things. The foley noise, immersive sounds and speech are all well rounded and balanced.
The Writer
Sometimes the play seems to repeat and loop on itself without providing any extra detail but I think this adds to the panic. I think Tom Powell has done a good job at providing the confusing yet clear script for the actors to follow. Some of the moments where the characters seemed near psychosis were delicate yet full of passion and the language is universal and yet very well targeted. It just all seemed to work. However, I will say some of the moments may not have been effective for certain demographics. For example, I know some people in my immediate circle would have been confused by “bare P’s”. So while this worked well for me, I do wonder if the choice of language may have taken away from the effectiveness of the piece.
The Cast
Ant, the male protagonist, played by Aldous Ciokajlo-Squire, is perfectly annoying. Persistent and descriptive, yet also quite reserved in tone. Daize, the female protagonist, played by Shakira Riddell-Morales, is a brilliant combination of harsh and abrupt, mixed with some rather tender and emotional moments. Both give as good as they get and the dynamic between the two characters is like two mates having a chat (excluding the introduction scene).
In Summary
For a 50ish minute audio play, this gives you all you need, want and then those little details on top. There are some moments I think are not needed but they also don’t make the piece worse. I think, as an audio play, this does all it needs to do and gives the listener the entertainment they sign up for.
The Rating!
As it stands, I would give this audio play 4 out of 5 stars. It does give me what I needed from an audio play, but has left me wanting more at the same time. Also the reserved nature of Ant meant that it took me a while to get attached to the story line. That being said, this is a great performance and one to experience for yourself.
Do you have your tickets? Have you experienced this show at another theatre? What were your thoughts? Let me know in the comments section!
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