Paul T Davies reviews Tremor now playing at Roundabout at Summerhall as part of the Edinburgh Fringe
Paul Rattray and Louise Collins in Tremor. Photo: Chris Lloyd Tremor Roundabout at Summerhall, Edinburgh Fringe
20 August 2018
3 Stars
When Tom's ex, Sophie, turns up at his house, we quickly become aware that he does not want to be found or in contact with her. Brad Birch's play is a good example of perfectly timed revelations. What we assume is an affair that went wrong, layer after layer is peeled away to reveal something more interesting.
Tom and Sophie are survivors of a bus crash in which 32 people died. Tom was the only survivor that reported to the police that the driver, a Muslim, had been drinking. The driver went to prison and, after release, is now dying and has requested to meet Tom. Sophie has already done this, but Tom is adamant he won't forgive the driver.
The play is very well performed by Louise Collins and Paul Rattray, who build the tension well. Yet the ending, that Tom is part of a Right wing organisation staging war against "them", felt contrived. There is much to commend this Sherman Theatre production, but it offers little that is remarkable against the tide of productions at this venue alone. It's a good, workmanlike production, but struggles to stand out at the Fringe.
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Paul is a playwright, director, actor, academic, (he has a PhD from the University of East Anglia), teacher and theatre reviewer! His plays include Living with Luke, (UK tour 2016), Play Something, (Edinburgh Festival Fringe/Drayton Arms Theatre, London 2018), , (2019), and now The Miner’s Crow, which won the inaugural Artist’s Pick of the Fringe Award at the first ever Colchester Fringe Festival 2021. In lockdown 2020 he created the audio series Isolation Alan, available on Youtube, and performed online in the Voice Box Festival. He is the founder member of Stage Write, a Colchester based theatre company, and his acting roles include Rupert in How We Love by Annette Brook, first performed at the Vaults Festival 2020 and revived at the Arcola and at Theatre Peckham in 2021. Follow: @stagewrite_
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