Review: THE VAPOURS, Overtime Theatre

Good direction, good acting - particularly from the always dependable Liz Vermeulen - and an intriguing plot idea combine to hold the audience's attention in "The Vapours" at the Overtime, in spite of some deep flaws in a play that implodes at the end under the weight of expectations and ideas that are left unresolved.

Vermeulen plays an investigator looking into a car crash. The driver (played by Gina Hughes, pictured here) claims to have swerved to avoid a large locust when the crash happened. She also claims to have knowledge of a hole near the crash site that is a portal to hell. The interchanges between Vermeulen and Hughes are the most intriguing parts of the play, except at the end when Hughes's character suddenly tranforms into an alien.

There are references to the Book of Revelations and End Times, but there is no coherent exposition of these notions and the play is further diluted by excursions into narrative dead ends that do nothing to add to the central plotline.

For example, there are the nonsensical statements by one of the characters (played by Venny Mortimer) who believes that the earth is flat, that the moon is just a light only 3000 miles from the Earth, and other absurd notions that no modern person in their right senses would give any credence. There seems to be no point in this exposition except to make the character appear ridiculous.

The exchanges between Mortimer and another character (a drunk played by Chris Kelly) also seemed generally pointless, adding little or nothing to the narrative.

Having said that, the play generally holds the audience's interest - thanks to the staging and acting - until it all falls apart at the end.