Nobel ran at The Edinburgh Fringe festival May 1-31 3013.
DESPITE its controversies, few would deny the scientific significance of stem cell research, least of all Exeter based company Theatre with Teeth.
Their Fringe show Nobel discusses the ethical questions posed by these scientific advances through physical theatre.
At the centre of the loose plot is a woman who has been diagnosed with a terminal illness, from this stems the thought processes of four interrelated characters who ponder over the scientific facts and the morality issues they present.
The five person cast is delightfully diverse, illustrating the viewpoints of doctors, friends and even a lecturer with an absurd fascination for the subject. However, in just under an hour they barely scratched the surface of the topic. With no real grasp on the developments of stem cell research, this worked for me as I was still able to keep up with the action, yet for another audience member it may have lacked a slight philosophical or scientific complexity.
Monologues, images and dynamic movement are used interchanging to create a piece of abstract physical theatre. It is fast moving, but remains fluid, using interpretive dance to illustrate the ramifications of when “stem cell research will stop repairing and start upgrading”. The strong choreography successfully moves the production forward and mirrored the sentiments of the preceding dialogue. Yet, the visual images created using balloons containing glow sticks, UV paint and old video clips, really elevated the force of the overall performance.
This experimental piece of theatre was both imaginative and thought provoking, as I really was forced to contemplate the morality of implementing stem cell technology in modern medicine. The company’s ability to influence their audience was largely down to the personal manner of performance. The frequent monologues worked to successfully bridge the gap between the performers and their audience, which in effect formed a potent and thought provoking relationship, where I was really made to evaluate the evidence presented to me on the stage.
Daring yet delightful, the performance was undoubtedly a success at the Fringe and I am excited to see what Theatre with Teeth produce this year.
Sophy Coombes-Roberts, Arts Editor
Read Deputy Editor Clara Plackett’s overall experience of The Edinburgh Fringe here.
Follow @exeposearts on Twitter and like us on Facebook here.
exeposedev 