Seed To Stage's production of 'Barbary Lion' puts two strangers, John (Sam Brenner) and Sarah (Anna-Jane Macpherson), in a completely normal room to talk. A printer sits on top of the central table, reliably spitting out conversation prompts to keep them talking. The scientists fuelling the printer remain unseen, their intentions for the two participants kept secret. Their only interference comes as a cold blue light or noise whenever they want to signal John and Sarah should stop talking on their current path.
I felt myself drawn into their conversations, watching two biographies unfold in an excellently paced and rich dialogue by Chandler Hubbard. The stories very often came easy to share with the other, which led to some confusion about their relationship. Though they are strangers, they remain as comfortable with each other from the beginning as the end of an eighty-minute life-sharing session. The stories that were often the most interesting were the ones that weren't wanted to be shared.
The two characters are distant from ours, in a vague dystopia where pandas are extinct and cameras watch their every move. I loved piecing together what the world around them is like, with clever passing comments on the state of the planet.
Directed by Harrison Hartley, the movement remains clear, and the two characters' physicality resembles who they are as a person. John remains still, stuck in his often-piggish ways, while Sarah moves frantically, moving quickly from one focus to another. The quick dialogue was masterfully navigated by the two performers, the razor-sharp subject changes and emotional depth was felt and exciting to watch.
I felt as an audience member a part of the scientists John and Sarah were trying to figure out. I wanted the interference that stopped the conversations to come more predictably. Sometimes a slight tangent warranted a stop, other times whole sections that felt like tangents were allowed. Consistency would've let me believe the experiment they were in, rather than a theatrical device to move on to the next question. However, the interferences that did arrive often created mini cliffhangers, as just as they aren't allowed to speak more of it, we aren't allowed to hear more of it.
The pair are intrigued by one another, yet they can't seem to describe why. Most of the information is about their history creating a picture as to who they were. The moments that really ignited the stage were when they acted in real time, breaking away from the questions or acting against the scientists. Each time they did it was gripping. They were no longer a collection of stories of their past, but real people acting on their own thoughts.
This debut play is a fascinating display into how we find people who are different from us compelling, involuntarily drawing out our own judgements and opinions. It's a brilliant opening for this new writing with a clear passion from the skilled creative team. Though I left not sure what the scientists' true intentions were, I feel as if when I left the theatre, the two characters were still locked in conversation, whether in an experiment or not.
Review: Freya White