ED2016 4/5 Reviews ED2016 Theatre Reviews

Chopping Chillies (Guy Masterson – Theatre Tours International)

By Sarah Richardson | Published on Tuesday 23 August 2016

Walk a mile in someone’s shoes to know them; walk 4,000 miles, and you may strike the depth of compassion reached in this quietly powerful tale of an Indian cobbler exiled in Camden. Through a captivating performance by solo storyteller Clair Whitefield, the audience follows the path of Ajna, a widower who swaps the Ganga’s holy waters for the “black spine” of London’s Northern Line. Struggling to make sense of both his grief and city life, Ajna becomes a reluctant taste-tester for the woman next door’s gap-yah inspired Indian kitchen. Their unlikely friendship is a gently comic backdrop to an aching but ultimately uplifting portrayal of life after loss, the imprint of which lasts long after the performance ends.

Assembly Roxy, until 28 Aug.
tw rating 4/5 | [Sarah Richardson]