EMERGENCE
Death becomes the
Pachamamas +++==
It's always tricky to
deal with grief on stage. By its nature, it is an emotion that comes after the
fact, making an audience feel it has missed out on the main event. It cannot be
resolved in the way any other dramatic conflict is resolved.
This three-hander by the
Pachamamas (not to be confused with Cora Bissett's similarly named company)
sidesteps the problem in two ways. The first is to focus not so much on death
itself, but on the passage of time and the many moments in life when two people
can grow apart. It considers the conflicting values of independence and
isolation as it pieces together the relationship between a Finnish mother
living in South America and her English-educated daughter.
The second way is to treat
the subject as a physical theatre cabaret. Lorraine Sutherland's production is
inventive and impressionistic, jumping from song, to choreographed movement to
dream-like surrealism. The results are uneven but the approach gives variety to
a potentially predictable scenario. Even though Emergence doesn't really
have an end (what end could there be?), it is a spirited and diverting show.
(Mark Fisher)
Underbelly, 226 0000,
until 28 Aug (not 16, 23), 11.20am, £8.50–£9 (£7.50–£8).
© Mark Fisher 2011
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