COVERING THE EDINBURGH FESTIVAL SINCE 1996
Half-Empty Glasses (Paines Plough / Rose Theatre Kingston)
Theatre company Paines Plough are as reliable an indicator of well-made theatre as you’ll get on the Fringe. Here, we meet Toye, a gifted young classical pianist who is good at most things. Whilst preparing for entry to a top music school, he becomes interested in black history – or rather its absence from the curriculum. Characteristically, he reads, learns and engages, drawing in his schoolmates too. But they follow his activism only up to a point and his school has limited tolerance. The resultant personal and social tensions are well and clearly explored, even if there is a lack of final resolution. The use of music, light and movement to express the otherwise inexpressible adds something special to the show.
ROUNDABOUT @ Summerhall, until 28 Aug.
tw rating 4/5 | [Alan Cranston]
