LTT Review: Mind Under

by Jen Aitken | 4:21 pm 11/07/2010

Written by Kiri Beeching Directed by Richard Huber Staring Kiri Beeching and Richard Huber (3/5)

This debut performance (a debut for both the play and the playwright) of Mind Under was bold and exciting, the exact kind of experimentation Lunchtime Theatre should be used for. 

The performance was tastefully directed by Huber; the blocking, along with the subtle and playful lighting designed by Janis Cheng, allowed Beeching’s partially undressed body to be exposed without being confronting. Beeching and Huber were interesting to watch and watching them engage in some of the dialogue from within the audience was a particular highlight. Though not specifically breaking the fourth wall the actors seeped into the audience, offering us a fascinating perspective as we became privileged to witness their private interactions. 

I would suggest that subtle manipulation of the audience was needed to instil the uneasy feeling that they themselves were voyeurs watching this “third-rate stripper in a two-bit strip club.” This needed to be carefully directed and would only have succeeded if the obvious vulnerability of Huber’s character was felt to its full effect. As it stood everything was a little hazy: I didn’t believe that Huber was particularly uncomfortable and thus I couldn’t invest in the reality of the environment. Every moment needed to be sharp and precise, and the performance lacked because of this failing. 

Unfortunately, overall, this production was a bit ‘same-y’. I wanted the routine to be broken, I wanted something to happen, but it was all very predictable; very Pretty Woman. The script itself had a certain wit and beauty to it but I think there needed to be more differentiation in the way it was presented to help render it fully formed. I don’t want to suggest that this performance was under-rehearsed, but I fear it may have been. 

Despite this I do think that Mind Under was bold, interesting, and exciting. This piece has a lot of potential and I would love to see it re-staged with a little more time and care put into honouring Beeching’s script and all its charm, beauty, and humour. 

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