Writer: Sam Chittenden
Director: Penny Gkritzapi
Reviewer: Lela Tredwell
FROM THE WRITER OF BEST NEW PLAY AT BRIGHTON FRINGE 2019 AND WINNER OF BRIGHTON FRINGE’S OUSTANDING SHOW AWARD 2021
From the writer of theatrical hit Clean, comes this excellent short play, exploring the price of isolation and the importance of human touch. Born out of lockdown 2020, Chemistry is set in a future world where humans have become largely self-contained creatures, enforced by strict rules to no longer concern themselves with physical touch or attachments. Meeting in order to complete the process of reproduction at a distance, Bea (Harriet Main) and Jay (Rowland Stirling) have 50 minutes to get to know each other and decide whether to give their consent to their genetic materials being merged to create new life.
Bea (Main) is seasoned at the process, composed and dutiful, she seems to have accepted the new order. Jay (Stirling) on the other hand is younger and a rookie to the proceedings. He’s visibly anxious, needy and searching for meaning. During the pairs discussion across the barriers that divide them, we discover Bea had a more traditional start to life, whereas Jay never had contact with his biological mother. Instead he was raised by the fosterer robots. It’s a process Bea claims to support unquestionably but of which Jay is much more dubious. As the time ticks down they explore their conflicting ideas and navigate their mutual attraction.
Rowland Stirling gives an outstanding performance as Jay. His insecurities and outbursts provide something emotive we can lean into in this otherwise sterile world. There is a raw humanity to Jay in contrast with his settings and to his almost robotic match. Harriet Main brilliantly embodies the detached Bea. She gives us just enough of a hint as to Bea’s deeply buried reservations to know not everything is as perfect as she claims for her with this limited, safer way of life.
The play includes original music by Sofia Panagiotopoulou and Panos Sotiropoulos, while sound and lighting design by Alex Garfath also contribute to creating a perfectly unsettling atmosphere. The set is minimal but highly effective. A line of lights separate Jay (Stirling) from Bea (Main) and each party sit behind a raised desk with a little screen in front of them running live video footage of the other. The digital countdown on the wall adds an urgency to the piece. Given time we futilely hope Jay might win over Bea to his more ‘human’ point of view but to what ends? The world is already set.
The staging has the couple facing one another, making it a challenge for all the audience to see both the actors’ faces. However, during portions of the production, live video footage of them both is projected onto a large screen behind the performers. Regardless, being able to physically only see the back of Bea (Main) for significant periods of time does feel like we might be missing some vital clues. The screens aren’t enough to convey nuances, which of course is also part of the message of this play.
It is an expertly put together piece of theatre which provides a well-considered exploration of the themes and is brilliantly performed. For lovers of dystopian speculative futures, this is highly recommended viewing.
Reviewed on 27th May
