Big Aftermath of a Small Disclosure is a play. The play is written by Magne van den Berg. The play has four characters. One of the characters is Jon. Jon wants to leave. Another character is Louise. Louise wants Jon to stay.
Johan and Sjon are their friends. Johan and Sjon have heard Jon wants to leave. Johan and Sjon do not want Jon to leave.
Jon, Louise, Johan and Sjon speak in short sentences. The sentences remind us of a Ladybird book. The actors sound like the synths in Humans. They ask a lot of questions. Why do they do that? We don’t know.
Sometimes, as well as the short sentences and questions, we hear heavy sighs. The sound designer is Max Pappenheim. The director is Alice Malin. Perhaps Alice Malin asked Max Pappenheim to add the heavy sighs to make Magne van den Berg’s play seem significant. It doesn’t.
Later we notice the men have variants of the same name: Jon, Johan, Sjon. Is this a clue? We don’t know. Could they be three sides of the same personality? Probably not.
The play reminds us of Jean-Paul Sartre’s Huis Clos. Does it? Yes. Huis Clos says hell is other people. “Are you sure you’ve never been in hell?” Sjon asks Johan. He is not even joking. “Can’t live with them, can’t live without them,” is not bad for a water-cooler comment but a weak idea for a play. There is more existentialism in Huis Clos. And less insight here.
The production is by Actors Touring Company. It is translated by Purni Morell. At first the style is novel. By the end it feels like the air has been sucked out of the room.
- At Summerhall, Edinburgh, until 26 August.
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