Review: 52 SOULS

This summer's final instalment of digital theatre shows created by Chronic Insanity comes in the riveting form of a collection of 52 monologues that deal with death and mortality. Megan Gates, Nat Henderson, and Joe Strickland co-direct the individual pieces, which are then chosen by the audience themselves randomly, ultimately creating an unrepeatable sequence of videos and a unique train of thoughts. By the end, the spectators will have gone through a singular yet absolutely universal experience - like death itself, one could argue.

In a year that's been kept hostage by a deadly disease, 52 Souls brings comfort and reflection, uneasiness and hope. Altogether, it's a truly multi-faceted and peculiar project. However, while the quality of the single videos falters due to the obvious limitations of their socially distanced filming circumstances, the different approaches to the subject couldn't be more diverse and original, ensnaring the viewers in a net of existential and ethical questions.

The characters seamlessly bring up authentic and compelling points throughout, bringing together science and belief systems while they depict fascinating and at times morbidly curious scenarios. They dissect and analyse one of life's greatest question marks in a production that defies any genres or attempts at pigeonholing. It's almost addictive to keep picking arbitrary cards from a deck to see where the company is going next.
A show that's guaranteed to spark a conversation and trigger meaningful remarks, 52 Souls maintains an impressive balance between entertainment and philosophical rumination.

52 Souls is available online until 30 August.

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