theSpace on the Mile
Aug 23 – 27, 20.10

There seems to be a heightening in this years Edinburgh Fringe of the thing that matters most; the actual performances. We turned up to the Space on the mile for a very short (half hour) play called ‘1:2:2192 (Retribution Day)’ some kind of code for the apocalypse to come? On one level yes!

This was a two person play brought about in the hotel venue, the close and clean space had only a couple of rows of seats on three sides of the looming yet practical stage (floor level). For the purposes of clarity the scenario was a lawyer (an anchor to judge the characters) as they shifted from memory to memory shared by a couple seemingly in love.

They verbally danced together sang together argued together and finished each others thoughts. There was a kind of patience in the affaire using silence and thought as much as dialogue and action. But the action took its twofold place in the story unfolding all was not well in a remembered moment of abuse.

From that moment on the story hit the wilderness of self harm and life catastrophe. Hospital admission, diagnosis, revenge; onward was driven into their lives that we saw become more and more unwell. We were entertained with pain and severe mental illness being played and imparted.

I guess the length of the show, was put in place to heighten the surreal experience with even a few jokes placed here and there. The two managed a kind of consistency with lines written for thinking rather than to entertain or cajole.

They would often look out into the crowd and in the close (passionate) space it felt like peering into your soul, which was all this play was about, with dialogue as I have said of very upsetting terms. The word control really helped them steal the show in their great and ultimately destruction powers of it. They do get help but every time while it works in the beginning it becomes clear that getting better wouldn’t take place.

Taking the place were the dynamics, and a serious delusion seemed the fill the air almost like a fog. They finished very quickly but all that needed to be said was, unfortunately the brightly written well conducted moments of silence perpetrated could not save the two from their self harming anguish, a timely play perhaps but lets keep believing in hope for the future. Not over loaded with darkness but filled with terror.

Daniel Donnelly