Written by Hannah Khalil, based on the story by Atoosa Sepehr
Directed by Chris White
Review by Marina Funcasta
Traverse Theatre - Traverse Two: Tickets
According to theatre etiquette, food and live entertainment should never go together. The sounds of crunching and slurping, combined with the pungent smells of flavoured nuts and sticky ice cream spoons, belong in the interval. To consume these during the show has felt like blasphemy in my experience of British theatre. For this reason, entering into Hannah Khalil's stage space felt so unnatural, almost transgressive. Bombarded by a waterfall of smells, from onion to coriander to the salt and vinegar Walkers, the guy sitting to my right was eating the lady to my left's French cologne. This cultural transaction that had already occurred before the play began certainly set the tone. What more would you expect from a play called 'My English Persian Kitchen', I suppose.
Cutting and chopping with precision, Isabella Nefar's eye for detail is tangible from the onset. Almost machine-like, she hums and works on her soup, painting an all-too-familiar tableau. That is until she admits that she doesn't cook.
Under Chris White's direction, Nefar flickers between the identities of passive cook and erratic, explosive victim. Tied together by repeating, almost taunting, words and phrases in Farsi and the occasional "focus". To be sure, there is a clearly reassuring element to this kitchen; it brings you to the present, focusing on small tasks which build up to create a larger meal, all while ensuring the elements don't burn. And yet, it seems like Nefar's brain is the boiling pot. Effervescent in her physicality, she jumps between the stage, transforming her surroundings into airports, taxis, and bedrooms – the fridge even acquires a symbolic, almost Tardis-like significance, mutating into symbols of her memory, becoming a swimming pool, or perhaps even a casket.
Needless to say, Nefar's plate was quite full, and it was unsurprising that her weaker moments were anchored in these very transitions. Having the tendency to rush at points, she stumbled on words in moments which may have benefitted from a pause. Under White's direction, however, these moments are overshadowed by the syncopated flashes of tension when her memories seep in. This is where Dan Balfour's brilliantly designed sound effects are spotlighted. The non-linear chaos of her mind is perfectly communicated, and Nefar responds adeptly in her physicality, all while keeping track of her very own noodle soup.
Fluctuating between tones of panic and rest, she ends her story by offering us a ladle of soup with a heart-warming smile. This is a story of survival, coming to terms with change but having to do it all alone. Hannah Khalil, an already established writer, burgeons her way into the Fringe with this one.
A Story of Survival
My English Persian Kitchen runs at the Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh, until August 25th on select dates.
Running time - One hour and ten minutes without interval
Review by Marina Funcasta (contact@corrblimey.uk)
Marina is halfway through an English literature degree at Edinburgh University, wherein she has been (considerably) involved in the drama scene: enjoying performing with their Shakespeare Company shows, but also modern takes on Arthur Miller. However, Marina's interests are wide-ranging under the theatre genre – enjoying abstract, more contemporary takes on shows (with a keen interest in Summerhall)
No comments:
Post a Comment