Writer: Doug Deans
Director: Joe Strickland
To call Chronic Insanity prolific would be an understatement. This is the production company’s seventh production of 2022, well ahead of schedule in their traditional “12 shows in 12 months” pledge.
Tonight’s show, 24, 23, 22 was first introduced online roughly this time last year amid a national lockdown, necessitating all sorts of technical workarounds. This time though, it’s face to face, in the Omnibus Theatre, Clapham.
As the audience enters the performers are already on stage. They engage in a little good-humoured audience engagement, and only with those who are comfortable with it. It sets the scene for what’s to come – an open insight into the lives of two young people let down by society whose paths cross with disastrous consequences.
Like Jason Robert Brown’s The Last Five Years, one character is moving forwards in time while the other is in reverse. There’s a danger to this, of course, because once the characters meet in the middle, the audience knows how the story ends. However, the danger is averted thanks to an elegantly written script, nuanced enough to remain engaging to the end.
Described as ‘gig-theatre’ the show is mostly a collection of monologues set to music, with just the odd peppering of interaction between the two characters. As our two protagonists, Ruth Page and Joe Matty are excellent. Charming and energetic, they handle 60 minutes’ worth of text between them with great awareness and variety.
Joe Strickland’s direction is simple but effective and he can be seen throughout the show operating the music from the back of the stage. At first it feels a little strange as the role is typically hidden at the back of an auditorium but putting him on it makes a refreshing change – it’s also clear he loves what he does.
The text is honest throughout and doesn’t shy from tackling difficult subjects. The character’s internal monologues are written in such a way that the audience engages and sympathises with them at every turn. They’ve made mistakes, but they’re only human, and we forgive them for it.
The show has multiple themes including society, anger, isolation, youth, and impulsiveness, but the most important thing is it’s entertaining. It’s an hour of excellent theatre, with great content and a great cast.
Runs until 21 May 2022
