Well folks, this is my first review about theater performances and I want to talk about a good portrait of relationships in our current society. Thrasher is its name, a brilliant expressive drama written by acclaimed playwright Conor McKee and directed by the MEN Award winning Wyllie Longmore.
A gripping story, at some point funny but always breaking your feelings with sharp, sour sensations. This because the Thrasher characters are real, to meet them within your everyday life is pretty easy. Superficiality, hedonism, lost innocence, objectification of the body and cancellation of the soul represented in six personages whom lifes get twisted… in which way? Vic is a classical Mancunian beautiful woman, aware of her pretty body and always showing a high self-confidence. Her beauty is a good mask and her strong, manipulative character hides her fragility and narcissistic wounds; Vic’s boyfriend Colin, typical handsome lad, bored by his relationship with Vic, starts to focus his attention on a superficially naive and “religious” nice young lady. She is Chloe, Vic “best friend”. Colin has also a ‘strange’ and ‘illegal’ link with Lee, another not unusual personage, a young man hourly trying to solve his life problems and keeping in some way his love relationship – on its last legs – using unuseful and unsuccessful strategies. At the same time his girlfriend, Jenny, undergoes her depressing reality… but she has a pretty lucky day when she meets Frank, and this is the most powerful, emotional, sentimental moment of the story. Frank, a lonely middle-aged man, wrapped in a mystery aurea.
The atmosphere of Thrash becomes emotionally intense also because of the powerful background music composed and performed by Michale Cretu, well known in the UK for his solo work and performances with his successful Jazz trio.
The last and special thanks is for Conor, for his smart ideas and cute sensitivity used writing his scripts and leaving them open allowing the characters’ stories to get a shape and own life. Also it is been beautiful to attend at the special afternoon at the Hull Truck Theater where other writers got involved developing short stories inspired by the Thrasher characters.
The 2013 Thrasher Tour is just started in the UK, go to enjoy it… and, if you would like, send me a comment please.
Cheers
More info: www.conormckee.com
