A world consumed by disaster leaves people turning to technology seeking vicarious pleasure in others' experiences.
Sound familiar? While the world portrayed in Opolis, an original production at Newcastle's Alphabetti Theatre, might be a little grimmer than our own, its parallels to our reality aren't hard to spot.
The two-person 'sci-fi psychological thriller', written and directed by Alphabetti's artistic director Ali Pritchard, presents a society living in the aftermath of an unspecified 'crisis', where people trade in their pre-crisis memories to be experienced by others, those who've only known the world in its dystopian state.
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Opolis, the social media/virtual reality experience system at the heart of the story, is essentially Tik Tok on steroids: an addictive, all-consuming escape where people while away their lives immersed in other people's past.
The drama follows Julie, played by Christina Berriman Dawson, as she argues with Opolis employee Isabel (Kay Greyson). With a few of her pre-crisis memories still intact, Julie wants out, dreaming of a back-to-nature escape to the Scottish Highlands, while child of the crisis Isabel believes there's nothing better out there.
While some parts of their debate feel a little on the nose, the overall result is an extremely watchable discussion of generational divides, personal responsibility and the nature of reality in a world mediated, as ours is, by omnipresent technology, particularly social media.
Although the set-up wouldn't feel out of place in an episode of Black Mirror, there's plenty of originality here, and the two actors bring commitment and energy to their roles, filling the essentially empty stage and keeping all eyes on them.
It's simply staged, with a nervy score from Wilf Stone rumbling away beneath the action building tension.
Over its tight 45-minute run time the show builds to a climax that leaves the audience on a fairly bleak note - but then again, looking at the proximity of our own world to various crises, climate and otherwise, perhaps that's appropriate.
Opolis is playing at Alphabetti Theatre until Saturday May 7 - tickets are 'pay what you feel' but booking is required. For more information and to book, visit https://www.alphabettitheatre.co.uk/opolis
