Creators: Tom Gaskin and Sean Kempton
Director: Sean Kempton
Filibuster is a vaudevillian tragicomedy that meshes circus skills, physical theatre and the art of the silent movie to create a story that is moving, charming and poignant. Grappling with themes of loneliness, love and boredom, we follow our off-kilter hero as he waits it out in an unknown seaside cabin.
Tom Gaskin, the sole performer and co-creator, is phenomenal. From the moment we first see him, he has complete control of his body, moving in a delightfully goofy yet completely precise way. He builds a character that is impossible not to love. We root for him as he avoids the draft and waits for his first love to return. The quality of Gaskin’s movement is so wonderful it makes a show essentially about boredom absolutely thrilling. He performs some seriously impressive circus acts, finding fluidity in hats and blocks and wooden chairs and holds entire wordless conversations with audience members that have us roaring with laughter. Gaskin’s puppetry work is slightly overshadowed by the rest of his performance skills, and as a result, the character of the butler is not as fully realised.
The design plays a big role in the cohesive and off-beat world. Set and costume by Adrian Linford are clever and skewed; the settings feel completely purpose-built for the joyful insanity of the world the protagonist inhabits. Handkerchiefs disappear through cracks, and chairs are pushed out from slots, all in surprising and delightful ways.
The sound, by Pete Buffery, is equally playful. Providing the only words, bar one pre-recorded letter, it tangos with Gaskin’s movement to carve out a narrative that anchors us throughout the hour-long show. The collaboration between Gaskin and director Sean Kempton is an exciting one which has produced a piece of work that is close to a must-watch as is but clearly has legs for its future, too.
Reviewed on 18 October and continues to tour until 9 November
The Reviews Hub Score
Whimsical and precise
