Escape the Scaffold, Thursday 20th April, The Other Room, Reviewer: Sarah Harris
ItÔÇÖs been over 24 hours since I saw Escape the Scaffold at The Other Room but my mind hasnÔÇÖt stopped thinking about it since. IÔÇÖve always had a thing for psychological thrillers, but usually in the form of Christopher Nolan films so this was a nice and interesting change. The performance was set in a small lounge, spacious but somewhat baron with only a few white chairs and a table in sight.
The first half of the show was scattered and confusing, but this is as expected considering the genre. It began with a conversation between Grace and Aaron, who are played by Rosie Sheehy and Trieve Blackwood-Cambridge. Both actors were phenomenal and truly convincing as their roles. Aaron is a strong-minded and outgoing character who is passionate about his beliefs, portrayed well by Cambridge, whereas the character of Grace is a little more realistic and aware of her surroundings. However, the real star of the show is Charles Reston who undertook the role of Marcus, a focused and driven individual. Reston is deceitful yet charming and is most definitely the dark knight of the show!
Without giving much away, Escape the Scaffold follows the life of three university students, with flashbacks and flash-forwards, leaving audience members intrigued and in suspense. The play subtly focuses on important topics such as race and politics. The writer, Titas Halder most definitely did a fantastic job by incorporating these issues in to the play and director, Hannah Price, definitely represented this well without it being too overpowering.
It was an interesting play to watch as a university student and especially with the current political situations grasping all media attention. It started off as a lighthearted romantic-comedy but took a quick turn in to darkness and mystery. Escape the Scaffold is definitely worth a watch and especially if youÔÇÖre interest if the psychological thriller genre!
by Sarah Harris