cleansed

Attempting to pull off two Sarah Kane plays at the Fringe- that’s brave. Now what if I mention that they both have the same cast? Fear No Colours have guts, you have to give them that. Cleansed, their first in a double bill of Kane plays (the second is Phaedra’s Love) is a devastating, lyrical play, at once full of fervent love and hate. An institution set on the boundaries of a university, part brothel, educational establishment and prison, is managed by the sadistic Tinker (Erfan Shojanoori). The inmates both love and suffer deeply, subject to extreme acts of violent restraint at the hands of their captor.

To an extent, it’s possible to track the love in Fear No Colours’ production. The physical elements of Cleansed are passionate and well-choreographed by Samuel Skoog (playing Carl) and Sophie Lamont. However, there’s little quiet or tenderness in the production. Rather than controlling levels of tension, the play is punctuated by frequent outbursts of shouting and runs the risk of becoming a slog of one atrocity after another. Whilst care is taken over the presentation of each scene, tonally there isn’t a lot of differentiation.

Nonetheless, the cast give strong performances, with Raymond Wilson particularly noteworthy as the tender, broken Robin. The show could easily come down to an hour; the cast don’t earn their pauses which causes the production to drag a little, but their enthusiasm and energy is palpable throughout. Julia Midtgard’s direction makes effective use of the small stage, creating an atmosphere so intimate that you can feel the actors breathing. The stylised violence also works well, though I’d like to see this effect extended over the breadth of Cleansed. A promising production, with the potential to be a strong, stylish take on a supposed ‘unstageable’ play.

Cleansed is playing at C Nova (Venue 145) from 10th-16th, 18th-23rd and 25th-31st August as part of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. For more information, visit the Edinburgh Fringe website.