Reviewer: Christine Stanton
Writer: Nathaniel Jones
Director: Katie Kirkpatrick
“Ethereal, Poetic, Entrancing”
3.5 / 5
It’s Midsummer – a time when the barrier between the two worlds is at its thinnest and the opportunity to celebrate before the latter half of the year begins. Each year an unnamed character is invited down to the riverbed to heal, by learning about the history and mysticism of the river, and by making cathartic offerings of their own, washing away memories and trauma to make way for a fresh start.
The gorgeously ethereal set design instantly draws the audience into the mystical world of Sing, River. Fairy-lights, trinkets and candles frame the centre of the stage, where a microphone awaits the arrival of the unnamed character. Throughout the show, performer and writer Nathaniel Jones uses the trinkets as offerings to and from the river, imagining elaborate stories of royalty and wonder as to how the items have ended up on the riverbed. He narrates humorous inner thoughts about distinguishing between what items are fragments of history, what are the drowned memories of youth and what is just rubbish left behind.
As this uniquely poetic show continues, there is a slow unravel from the whimsical mythological tales, to the inner trauma that the character has gone through – abuse, a break-up and a struggle to heal. At points the transitions between scenes can be slightly confusing and over-ambitious, jumping between various memories and timelines with no real linear structure. As the show progresses, it slowly becomes clearer once everything is pieced together, but tightening the script up slightly would help eliminate the initial confusion and allow the storyline to flow better. The otherworldly stories of Gods and deities become reflections on memories as a vessel to overcome trauma and sadness, using gentle humour to approach both aspects with a contrastingly complex simplicity. It would be great if the lighting and sound design could be incorporated slightly more, as the few moments of blue spotlights and water noises in the background completely elevate the performance and should be featured more frequently throughout to really add to the illusion of the riverbed.
Jones is a wonderful performer, the gentle, personable approach on stage working perfectly alongside the storyline. The original folk musical score from composer Faye James features beautifully entrancing songs, a personal favourite being the impeccable Fields of Purple Strawberries, which I have shamelessly streamed on repeat from the Soundcloud page since the show! The music adds an additional element of intrigue and serves as a good separator between the different recollections of each item on stage.
This is a unique production that takes elements of British mythology and combines them with modernity, hypnotises the audience with its soothing melodies and washes away any tropes of traditional shows or narrative structure.
Runs Until 8 July 2023 then heads to the Edinburgh Fringe
Photography: Riya Kataria
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