Reviewed by Rachel Doulton
600 Seconds series at the Blue Room Theatre is a fantastic initiative for early career performers to test the waters of new ideas in front of an audience. This year it is split into two; 600 Seconds - Makes and 600 Seconds - Moves. Makes is the first to come in this year's Summer Nights Festival and we are presented with 5 works that explore a diverse range of topics.
The first piece was a solo movement piece with a combination of projected animation and music that all synchronised perfectly.
The second piece explored the space of almosts, and the yearning one gets to experience all the possibilities of life. Evocative of Sylvia Plath’s Fig Tree analogy, the two artists are exuberant in their youthful longing to live out each potential thread of fate. Production elements were kept simple to let the writing and character work shine.
We are then taken through the exploration of generational trauma and diaspora in the third piece between a father and daughter with the backdrop of the Bosnian War. Raw and compelling in its content and elements of surrealism.
Tension built in the evening is then broken with the next piece. The heroes that see us through lockdowns, hangovers, and empty fridges; the essential worker; the Deliveroo driver. Raucously funny in his journey to deliver the meal of his life. This well-rounded piece leaves you wanting to see more of the person beyond the icon tracking your order.
To close the evening we have a satirical take on a beloved genre of cinema; the shark movie. Again in this piece production elements are kept simple to let the writing shine through. These three performers are hilarious in poking fun at the roles actors are typecast as and ask us to look beyond the gleaming white teeth and bikinis.
These young theatre practitioners are inspiring, playful and heartwarming and each piece deserves further exploration to extend the ideas conceptualised.
Reviewer Note: Tickets for this show were provided by the theatre company. More details about each piece can be found on the Blue Room website
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