The
Impotent Fury of the Priveleged
Daniel Kitson
(11th
June 2008)
Reviewed by
Going to see The Impotent Fury of the Privileged I expected to see a
stony faced man whose distaste for the society he experiences had to be
scripted and ranted. This would, I thought, would be theatrical Marmite.
I expected to be in an audience who were engaged and enraged, modern day
Citizen Smith types (minus the beret).
But I was pleasantly surprised. On stage walked a beardy type in what
I have to say was a very snazzy suit complete with navy blue silk edging.
From the minute Daniel Kitson walked on he oozed charm, intelligence and
wit. His stand up/monologue discussed our self-imposed inability to show
compassion to others. How we ‘cynacise’ any wrongdoing in
the world to nothing more than a con. The man begging in the street is
a professional beggar not worthy of our few coppers that we ultimately
choose not to throw his way.
Instead we live our lives consciously oblivious to inequality, repeating
our collective mantra of ‘what can I do?’. Kitson doesn’t
emotionally blackmail, he just observes and beautifully articulates his
view on the world. At times I was lost and shamefully switched off, but
on the whole he was engaging and thought provoking.
His final passionate and wonderful call to action was the real highlight
when he spoke genuinely and from the heart urging each person in the audience
to show compassion and take responsibility. Perhaps if we all care about
things outside the perimeters of our own lives things would be a little
better.
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