'In this way I shall preserve many things that would otherwise be lost in oblivion. I shall find daily employment for myself, which will save me from indolence and help to keep off the spleen, and I shall lay up a store of entertainment for my after life.'

For James Boswell posts please follow the labels on the right.

This blog mainly contains reviews from the Edinburgh Festivals from 2008 to 2010 which I wrote for the Edinburgh Festivals Magazine. These reviews cover everything from comedy to contemporary dance; children's theatre to Handel.


Tuesday 25 October 2011

Hot Mess Review

Hot Mess

Not another reunion. The very name implies some sort of severance of communication, which in our wired age this is actually harder to do than staying connected. So by definition, almost, something is bound to go wrong: the fat one is going to get drunk and start crying; the siblings are going to fall out and the new boyfriend is going to feel totally out of place.

Hot Mess, written by Ella Hickson, follows the reunion of unidentical twins Polo and Twitch who, after a brief divergence in life, have collided once again on their tiny little home island. Polo, the boy, has taken the high road to London; Twitch, the girl, has opted to stay behind. 

Imagine this reunion then, but imagine you know no one there. The bar is inaccessible from your seat. You are now forced to listen to the loud and overconfident banter which can only come from the Alphas of a public school. They shout away, seemingly wearing their ability to endure the abuse of others as a badge of honour. 

The performance explores the increasing divergence in modern society between sex and love. Or at least so the press release tells me. In fact it could be about a whole number of things washed up on the theatrical beach: the folly of a reunions; the age old dilemma of provincials running of to the metropolis; sibling relations. Despite the various themes and ideas, one can’t help wonder if anyone really goes through life thinking about sex, love and relationships in such pent up and pretentiously philosophical terms. It comes across as self-absorbed and devalues the point as a result. 

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