theatre review

Torn Out Pages

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This play tells of a daughter's realisation of her late mother's terrible secret, which holds the key to her own mental problems, and the journey of both towards self-acceptance. Short scenes kept the energy high as the stories of the mother in the sixties and the daughter in the present day intertwined, producing some knockout scenes of grief and pain, and that concentrated silence that occurs when an audience can hardly bear what they are seeing. Emma Keele, as Rita the mother, gives a stunning performance, and the live music made this a fluent and atmospheric production, along with video projections that fused seamlessly into the storytelling. Devastating yet beautiful, celebrating the joy yet vulnerability of the human body.

Gilded Balloon, 30 Jul - 25 Aug (not 11), 2.00pm (3.00pm), prices vary, fpp 238

tw rating: 4/5

published: Aug-2008

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