Three chickens, as billed, confront us as the lights go up. They are finely feathered, black, white and brown, caged. One is rationalist, one a dreamer, the third perhaps more directly perplexed by life’s uncertainties. Like humans, they know they will die but are still deeply uneasy: if death is inevitable, is it to be welcomed or feared? As they ponder their predicament there is some humour, some pathos and much tedium. Sadly, this is a show where the inspiration seems largely to have run out after the initial idea. Egg-sistential crisis does not on its own make a fully-fledged dramatic soufflé. It takes better writing and a stronger sense of theatre to make the banalities of life seem important.

Assembly Roxy, until 26 Aug.
tw rating 2/5 | [Alan Cranston]