EDINBURGH 2014 - BWW Reviews: LIGHT, Pleasance Dome, August 2 2014
It gives me no pleasure whatsoever to write this but if you ask me, Theatre Ad Infinitum have dropped the ball.
The ensemble, committed to producing works that "harness the universal language of the body", have made a name for themselves in recent years, thanks to the stunning, award-winning Translunar Paradise and last year's uniquely daring Ballad of the Burning Star. Their annual must-see status in the Pleasance Dome is completely justified, which makes it all the more baffling that their 2014 production is as leaden and, well, shonky as it is.
Set in the early 22nd century, Light tells the story of Agent Petros, who must navigate a future world of mind control, corruption and betrayal. In the interests of fairness, it must be pointed out that the lighting design of the production is excellent: locations like a trendy bar and the corridors of a secret agency are brilliantly represented by light alone, but technical achievements can only go so far in maintaining interest; as the likes of Pixar often say, it's all about the story - and sadly, this one's not up to much.
It quickly becomes a chore to attempt to care about Petros, or any of the characters he encounters on his mission to overthrow his father and as the clunky narrative continues, the 80-minute running time begins to feel a whole lot longer. Also problematic is the use of occasional subtitle-esque captions on a video screen; this is distracting, partly because they tend not to match what the performers are exaggeratedly mouthing, and also because they are straight out of third-rate sci-fi TV movie hell.
All that said, the hugely capable performers give it their all, and despite this misstep, the company have been impressive enough in the past to ensure I'll be queueing around the block at the Dome for whatever they are offering next year -hoping to see a return to heart-rending form.
Light runs at Pleasance Dome until August 25th.
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