The World Holds Everyone Apart,
Apart From Us
Genre: Storytelling
★★★★
Venue: Underbelly
Low Down
Stuart Bowden is a diminutive,
likeable performer hailing from Melbourne, Australia. He brings his acclaimed
solo show to Edinburgh from the Melbourne and Adelaide festivals. A seasoned
raconteur, he is also half of the inventive Loungeroom Confabulators, which is
performed in peoples’ homes.
Review
This is an utterly charming
one-man show, but it is not just an exercise in theatrical whimsy, it is
thoughtful and thought-provoking. The story of Avian is sweet and tragic, and
reminds us of the fragility of the world around us and of the relationships we
make while on it, which are as precarious as the stacked plastic storage boxes
that Bowden climbs on as his swaying set, which seem quite hazardous, and
questionable from a health and safety perspective. It gives the production an
air of a kid playing in his lounge-room on a rainy day that is altogether
delightful.
The character Avian wants to
save the world (it’s the Future) and he has determined that the world is
lonely, and so he is making a study of loneliness via a self-imposed exile into
the desert. In 14 years he has only met three people, and he tells us about
each of them through delightful song and very open, honest chat to the
audience.
A skilled musician, Bowden
creates a live soundtrack through his own voice on a nifty little machine which
can record, loop and layer sounds. He harmonises with his own voice in ways
that are almost other-wordly, and creates percussion with just what’s around
him. He also plays the ukulele in accompaniment to some compelling little
songs. Just as he rearranges the storage boxes, stacking and
restacking them to make different sets, he builds the soundtrack to the show as
we watch it, a glowing endorsement for DIY theatre-making – you get the
impression that Bowden’s playbuilding method is workshop-based and organic,
stemming from play and experimentation.
There is something mesmerising
about a fantastic story-telling show, and this has definitely been a Fringe
where some exemplary story-telling solo shows have sprung up. Bowden will be
one to watch as his fusion of live music-making and storytelling is joyous and
full of sparkle.
Reviewed by Vivienne
Egab 26th August 2011