Home
I can always admire a show that takes risks, and a theatre company that takes pride in that, especially in devised work. With this, Temper have produced a genuinely thought provoking show. I’m intrigued to see what they get up to next.
Playhouse
This week I was back at the Playhouse to watch Temper Theatre’s HOME, which has previously toured the UK and China, and was at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival this summer.
We follow Imogen who, after growing up in the Fens, has to make a decision on whether or not to visit her father after receiving a call from him, telling her that the family home is being sold. Starting to have a panic attack in her bathroom, she is transported through an Alice in Wonderland/Coraline inspired mirror into her memories and back to her childhood, exploring the events that led up to her present. What struck me and intrigued me about the show was the fact it was set in and inspired by East Anglia - an absolute rarity for plays. I think it’s the first I've ever seen of its kind. Incorporating physical theatre, choreographed movement and dance, it reflects on flooding in the region and its impacts on the land and the people.
The distinct lack of dialogue in the hour-long show was an interesting choice, as director Finn Morrell explained in a Q&A afterwards that there was never a set script for the show - it was devised around blocks of story that the actors then worked from. Over 700 light and sound cues were used in the performance, and they led to an effective display of mood shifting and establishing location. A slight issue I had, however, was that the sound design involved actors lip syncing to pre-recorded audio lines, which I wasn’t really a fan of. It took away from the live and real element of a theatrical show; instead it felt more artificial, so it took me out of it ever so slightly. The blend of the original score and actors’ lines was murky, like floodwater, at times - maybe it was intentional!
Huge kudos to the cast, especially Genevieve Felder, who learnt the blocking for the show in a week! From one actor to another, it’s a brilliant feat, and so admirable. Zoe Villiers and Jack Bentinck’s father/daughter dynamic worked well, and Eden Harbud and Malin Kvist were a great supporting ensemble in their shifting roles throughout the piece.
Despite my nitpick with the audio, there were some really effective moments with the main set piece of the house and how it could be divided and reformed to move seamlessly from scene to scene - it was designed in collaboration with the renowned company Punchdrunk, which I was really impressed by. The entire score was original, too, composed by Dave Price. It complimented the peak emotional scenes of the show perfectly, especially with the incorporation of some Fen instruments, too!
I can always admire a show that takes risks, and a theatre company that takes pride in that, especially in devised work. With this, Temper have produced a genuinely thought provoking show. I’m intrigued to see what they get up to next.
