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Next!
Directed by Chris Tomlinson
(23rd–24th
November 2012)
Reviewed by
Next! aimed to explore the concept of loneliness
and solitude in a dark one man comedy, and surprisingly it easily exceeded
the goal. I wasn’t won over at first by Graham Hicks; his slapstick
approach to his performance initially left me rolling my eyes. However
as the play developed, so did his character, and the slapstick subsided
to leave in its place a beaten man. A man worn down chasing a dream, a
man who as a boy was let down by a father who could only ever “pencil
him in” and then not turn up, then as he became an adult he just
closed himself off from the world. Living nothing more than an isolated,
bordering on insane existence, made up of finding excuses not to answer
the phone and surviving on sandwiches of tomato and brown sauce.
It wasn’t in the slapstick we found his humanity, nor in the rather
desperate section were Hicks dresses up as a woman (although both of these
got great laughs from the audience), it was his quiet, understated moments
that won me over. Talking about his nan and especially his dad made his
character simply loveable. For anyone who has ever felt lost or alone
in the world, this play sums up those moments.
Hicks performed with such enthusiasm - his face capable of portraying
every thought and emotion beautifully. He was the perfect actor to play
this role - lost enough to be believable, but clued up enough to be likeable.
Whilst I got the feeling some of his friends and family were in the audience
that night, the standing ovation and massive applause he received was
earned. Overall, a very entertaining and thought-provoking sixty minutes.
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