The Audit
I have enormous admiration and respect for the fiercely patriotic people of Iceland. And not just because of their success in the Euro 2016 football tournament, or because of the music of Bjork, Mammut and Sigur Ros. During the 'Þorskastríðin' ('cod wars') from 1958 to 1976 they protected their fishing industry by doggedly and persistently extending their territorial waters from 4 to 200 nautical miles, forcing British Navy frigates to escort trawlers into the disputed waters. And Iceland spawned three banks that became world players during the post-millenium years, punching well above their collective weight. All of this from a sovereign nation with a total land area just twice the size of Norfolk, and a population of less than half.
Yet, as we know, their David and Goliath story finally came unstuck during the world banking crisis of 2008. It is this story that forms the basis of The Audit, the second work from Proto-Type Theatre to examine contemporary politics, performed last night at Norwich Arts Centre. Sub-titled Iceland, A Modern Myth, and using a presentation style similar to that used in last year's A Machine They're Secretly Building (which examined the world of global surveillance), actors Rachel Baynton and Gillian Lees again team up to produce an engaging and collaborative delivery of Andrew Westerside's brilliantly constructed script. Part poetic, part docu-drama and part call-to-revolution, The Audit reminds us how the greed of a few can so easily lead to misery for millions. This riches to rags story of the Icelandic banking system is presented lecture-style, with well-researched archive material interspersed with stirring monochromatic imagery – swelling oceans, desolate fishing cottages, and midnight bonfires. Lead charcter Eva's grandfather becomes an early participant in the 'pots-and-pans' demonstration in Reykjavik that eventually brings down the Icelandic government, and leads to the imprisonment of some of the banks' market manipulators.
Taking this Icelandic saga and extending it to use as a metaphor for today's increasingly globalised banking systems may or may not be completely valid – I am not an economist. But Proto-Type Theatre excel in delivering The Audit in a style that entertains, informs, challenges and questions, without being overly provocative. They produce the spark and the tinder but leave the audience to contemplate the fire. It is a tactic that cleverly leaves us with the notion that one day our own pots and pans might also be heard loud and clear. And we could just make a difference.
