Review: FLUXORAMA, Riverside Studios

Fluxorama, one of 21 short plays in Riverside Studio's Bitesize Festival, is a series of three monologues written by award-winning Brazilian playwright Jô Bilac. It's a bold attempt to deal with life and death themes in under an hour – and although it's commendable to tackle such substantial subjects, in the end, Fluxorama doesn't quite hit the mark.

The overall motif that links the three declamations by three different actors is fighting: fighting to finish a race, fighting for a life and fighting for one's sanity. 

Katherine Lyle's convincing as Walkiria, who's coaxing herself along towards the final stages of a marathon in the searing heat of São Paulo – striking a chord during our own current off-the-chart temperatures – jogging all the while on stage in an admirable display of fitness.

She goes through various phases, from chiding herself for being useless ("Why did I have this idea?"), to asking why she's running this race ("What are you trying to prove and to whom?"), to eventual self-congratulation ("You're wonderful!").

I like Bilac's notion of how we beat ourselves up when we don't think we're performing well, and equally, how smug we can become when we believe we've finally reached our perceived goals. This speech also examines how women, in particular, can be hard on themselves when their behaviour doesn't reach society's expectations.

The second monologue kicks off dramatically with Diego Zozaya as Luiz, lying off the side of a bed in front of black drapes (Alice Edgar's setting's simple and the same for all three soliloquies). He's been severely injured in a car crash in his beloved Mustang.

Zozaya gives the strongest performance of the evening as Luiz grappling to hold onto his life, reminiscing about good times – and bad. In a moment of much-needed humour, he sensually recalls his love for beautiful Isadora and then moves rapidly onto his hatred for the "bastard taxi driver" who ripped him off after taking him to the airport.

Luiz expresses disappointment for a sub-standard impending death ("not how I'd imagine I'd die") and asks whether his life was good. He ends up feeling lonely, despite sultry thoughts about luscious Isadora, and recollections of his family. The piece ends up ambiguously, with the distant sound of wailing sirens and Luiz murmuring, "It's okay" and "I'm here."

The final monologue – where Karinna de Simone takes on the role of Amanda, a foreign housewife who begins to lose her senses – is the most surreal of the trio. She addresses her mom, laying out how she loses first her hearing, masking so credibly that those around her say she's never been so attentive before when listening to them. There's even a meta reference to how this is like an actress performing.

Amanda then loses other senses, such as taste, smell, touch and sight. She remains strangely optimistic, saying her love for people keeps growing. She hugs her friends, desiring to feel them. De Simone's portrayal of a woman "left behind in nothingness" is bleak and despairing. She's "waiting for an afterlife that never came."

Another element to the show is a sonorous voice-over from an alien figure called Bacterium, played by James Walsh. He makes observations about these strange human creatures, with an eerie sound design by Leonardo Ferreira underscoring his words. I'm not convinced about this aspect of the production and am not sure it's really required.

According to information provided, the title of the show signifies the concept of a "stream" (fluxo) of consciousness and an overarching view (panorama), blending psychological intensity with dark humour.

While probing the theory of how we might react under extreme pressure when pushed to absolute limits sounds interesting, I don't feel Fluxorama was clear enough or emotionally engaging enough to pull the whole thing off.

However, I do admire the idea behind the Bitesize Festival. Championing new works of creativity and taking risks, while at the same time giving room to new artists to try things out is something that should be applauded.

Fluxorama runs at Riverside Studios until 5 Aug. The Bitesize Festival continues until 30 August.

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