The Murderer

Luke Kennard (original poem) and Clown Funeral
Clown Funeral
ZOO Southside

The Murderer

What if you could rehabilitate a murderer by placing them to live with someone? This is the broad question that The Murderer asks as we meet a murderer and his ‘carer’ who has agreed to share her house and routine.

They slowly build a relationship with levels of dependency subtly shifting and a question mark over who the rehabilitation is actually benefitting gradually beginning to hang over their interaction.

Representing the outside world is an actor who switches from cab driver to TV screen chirping “catch you later” at the end of each appearance; she's not part of their world and they don't really want her to be.

As he grows in confidence, she grows more jittery and passing of time is reflected through deliberate mime and repeated sequences establishing how they've settled into each other's company.

This is a frustrating show with an unusual premise, moments of tension and confident performances. Unfortunately, the overall pace is rather glacial and the choice to continually move pieces of set makes for some pleasing visuals but doesn't add much to the development of the piece.

It's a brave choice to run a production with a rolling cast and I'd be curious to see how it differs. There are plenty of good ideas here but they don't quite make a cohesive whole.

Reviewer: Amy Yorston

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