A bare, black floor, perhaps fifteen metres across, is hemmed in at the sides by standing lights and unidentified black contraptions. A man (Richard Keiss), dressed in white shirt and loose black tie, walks silently onto the stage with a battered brown case and stares intently at a piece of paper in his hand. The everyday world ceases and the abstract begins.

Four characters, from some separate and unusual world, filter onto the stage, scene by surreal scene. Fionn Gill is a man of considerable height and hairiness and the least likely person to imagine squeezed into a Nora Batty-esque headscarf and cardigan. Daniel Ngyou is dressed eclectically in morning jacket, red shorts and black deerstalker. Naomi Rothwell, with her hair tied in child-like bunches, pads onto the stage in a yellow top and a peculiar ribbed, white trouser-skirt combination. Tobi Poster, wide-eyed and bare-headed, is dressed in a simple white collarless shirt and ragged brown, calf-length shorts.

Aside from a few utterances, the piece is wholly silent, accompanied only by a judicious selection of musical styles ranging from the epic to the quirky. The characters, as a whole or individually, blend clowning, puppetry and object manipulation to create a series of visually captivating and snappy segments. Each one offers a fresh insight into the imaginative minds of this talented and experimental ensemble. Two lengths of tubular foam form the moving legs and arms of an amorous dancing partner for Fionn Gill's 50's housewife. A harmonious quintet is formed through layering the repetition of vegetables' names. Lit only by an office lamp, a wire-framed puppet scales a briefcase, meets a storm of torn paper at its summit and leaps off, parachuting down to the ground. Almost every scene encourages tossing aside of disbelief and working the imagination, creating a rewarding sense of creative collusion.

Although the narrative thread is loose and sometimes confusing, it is soon clear that a tight grasp of its course isn't needed to enjoy the show. The ambiguity of what occurs on stage is interesting, often giving an opportunity to interpret and wonder. The simplicity of the action is also one of the show's strengths, allowing for common human appreciation, regardless of age or background. The final part, in which the traveller finally loses his way for good, surprises with its power to move. Overall it's an inventive, entertaining and disciplined piece of theatre.

Cast Credits: (alpha order): Fionn Gill - Old Woman. Richard Keiss - Traveller. Daniel Ngyou - Mischievous Boy. Naomi Rothwell - Girl. Tobi Poster - Potato Man.

Company Credits: Devised by - (the company). Director - (the company). Lighting Designer - Becky Daley. Costume Designer - Samantha Keeble. Technical Manager - Becky Daley. Lost Spectacles: Co-Founders (alpha order): Fionn Gill, Daniel Ngyou, Naomi Rothwell, Tobi Poster. Producer - (the company). Company - Lost Spectacles. Website - www.lostspectacles.com. Square Chapel Centre for the Arts: Press / Marketing Manager - Kimberley Spurr. Website - www.squarechapel.co.uk

END

(c) Jonathan McPherson 2009

reviewed Saturday 18 April 09 / Square Chapel for the Arts, Halifax UK

Fringe Report (c) Fringe Report 2002-2012

www.fringereport.com