This exquisite “dysfunctional family show” exists somewhere between the real and the imaginary. Through an expertly inventive hybrid of animation and live performance, Please Right Back succeeds in exploring complex social issues in a way that remains endlessly charming and playful.
Kim and Davey’s dad is on a special mission, an odyssey through a vibrant and perilous dreamland, a madcap film noir featuring pirates, cocktail lounges and an estranged circus lion. Meanwhile, the children’s lives are grayscale and controlled, their play surrounded by instructions “Danger, Keep Out, Find Your Happy”, and their dreams threatened by the shadowy NIPPP Academy. It’s no wonder Kim relishes her father’s correspondence.
Based on Co-Artistic Director Suzanne Andrade’s childhood experiences, Please Right Back explores the complexity of growing up through trauma: social pressures, family support and the care and education system that pull at Kim as she seeks stability and belonging. This is a manifesto for the power of the imagination in the face of data-driven, zero-tolerance education. It is a discussion on how best to protect children from reality, while also preparing them for adult life. It’s a rallying cry in defence of childhood. It’s also tremendous fun!
Told through stunning animation, physical performance, singing, dancing and ensemble storytelling, 1927 captures all the joy, wonder and fear of childhood. This is a hybrid performance in every sense, as challenging ideas are tackled with levity and moments of lightness with serious commitment; meticulously constructed animations and direction are also chaotic and subversive; its richly cinematic palate draws on influences from German expressionism to Disney, but it remains urgently live and knowingly theatrical.
Please Right Back is a genuinely masterful and unique theatrical experience for the whole family.
The Edinburgh International Festival offers a range of affordable tickets for those that need it, meaning that families such as Kim and Davey’s, and more besides, are able to access this wonderful performance, as well as the rest of it’s stunning programme of international work.