YOUR GUIDE TO EDINBURGH'S FESTIVALS
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ED2019 4/5 Reviews ED2019 Theatre Reviews
Piano_Play (Charlie Russell Productions)
By Andy Leask | Published on Sunday 11 August 2019
If the prelude doesn’t grab you, worry not, and wait for the second movement, as this tale of unrequited – obsessive? – love is more than it first appears. In addition to playing the piano, Ed is playing some clever games with narrative perspective; we begin to question the reliability of his account, slowly reinterpreting what we’re hearing. Music is used both as part of the narrative, and to set the mood, with a meta-commentary adding another layer of sophistication. The play’s crescendo comes when we realise what Ed wants, what he needs, yet we can’t offer the affirmation he so requires. For a play with so many laughs in it, the resonant silence it leaves in its wake is surprisingly powerful.
Underbelly George Square, until 26 Aug.
tw rating 4/5 | [Andy Leask]
