Fewer Emergencies

It’s the first time production company Elbow Room have branched out to perform another’s work, however their adaptation of Martin Crimp’s Fewer Emergencies has an affecting rawness, sense of intimacy and the spirit of DIY resourcefulness that make this production feel entirely their own.

Director Marcel Dorney says of the experience: “It’s like producing an album by one of our heroes. The music is there, but the space is yours. It’s a different kind of freedom for us.”

Fewer Emergencies presents three seemingly unconnected acts that examine middle-class regret right through to the troubled mind of a mass murderer. The tight-knit group of characters, played by Dean Cartmel, Emily Tomlins and Edwina Samuels, make their audience work for the meaning throughout the play’s duration. With role switching, quick movements and “forgotten lines” presented via internal monologues, interrogation scenes and even a jaunty, cabaret style sing-a-long; this performance can be difficult to follow and make sense of.

The trio of stories are concerned with the nature of “truth” and this is dwelled upon in a way that shows the vast complexity of that very notion. The tensions builds slowly, amplified expertly by Jason Cavanagh’s lighting direction but overall, this surreal performance has an erie feeling of dreaminess that’s sure to stay with you long after you wake up.

Fewer Emergencies is playing at The Owl & The Pussycat until August 31st.
For tickets visit trybooking.com.