It's Dark Outside

[post-author-rating] (4/5 Stars)

There’s an awful lot of puppetry at this year’s Edinburgh Fringe, which is to be expected given the fact that puppetry is back in fashion for theatre-makers. Whilst this should be celebrated, it does present a problem: there are far too many inexperienced companies attempting to work puppetry into their pieces with little regard for the art of puppetry. Thankfully there are companies such as Perth Theatre Company which brought the hit The Adventures of Alvin Sputnik: Deep Sea Explorer to Edinburgh last year, which are proving that they can study, master and kick some ass with puppets, as the company’s new show It’s Dark Outside proves.

Now there is a slight warning that is required about It’s Dark Outside: it falls into that slightly whimsical category of theatre that plucks at your heartstrings, and includes clouds and dogs, and general cuteness. Setting that aside, what you have left is a piece of puppetry manipulation with animated projections that demonstrates a delight in puppetry movement and storytelling. An old man with wrinkled face, and glasses and a walking stick is the focus of the piece, and is presented in human-form, rod puppetry and animation. He finds himself on the face of a ‘Wanted’ poster for some crime, and begins to hit the road, with a sherif stalking behind him (old Western style). As the old man’s adventure begins, he meets a series of manipulated objects, such as a tent that acts like a dog, and a dog made out of clouds. There’s also a repeated motif of memory loss, which underpins the piece with a more serious message, as his thoughts appear in whispy clouds that float away despite his desperation to hold onto them.

In all, it’s a  delightful piece. We can appreciate the skill and talent of Tim Webb, Arielle Gray and Chris Isaacs who perform the piece. There are moments of visual delight that really are done to perfection. The care and thought that’s gone into the show are obvious, and individual moments that make your eyes shine and your lips smile are numerous. Through mask, puppetry, animation and object manipulation It’s Dark Outside shows how puppetry should be done: acting as a form of joyous entertainment, showing the skill and commitment required to make puppetry work (Edinburgh performing companies take note) whilst still delivering a serious message about dementia. It’s not often my eyes tingle from seeing something visually captivating but Perth Theatre Company nails it, and will no doubt sell out during its run at the Edinburgh Fringe. A London transfer? We can only hope!

It’s Dark Outside is playing at Underbelly as part of the Edinburgh Fringe Festival until 26 August. For more information and tickets, see the Edinburgh Fringe Festival website.