Out of the Ordinary

Playwright Alex Vickory-Howe explores many themes in his play Out of the Ordinary. His motivation for doing so stems from his theory of what it is to be successful, how important success is and whether being an artist rather than an accountant should warrant more or less adulation.

The set for Accidental Productions’ staging of the play is painted grey, consisting of many milk crates painted the same colour. They are used for seating and a stage within a stage that is the focal point for much of the action. The ensemble all wear grey clothing that is given colour and depth with stick on aprons, vests and dresses, not unlike the Betsy McCall cut outs of the fifties. Upstage is a large square piece of lattice painted the same colour. Props are cardboard cut-outs; that look out of place and messy. For me, it was difficult to find a reason why traditional items were not used. Some fell over and it became quite distracting.

The action centres around the protagonist Theodora (Theo), a young woman who is feeling the pressure to do something great with her life. Whilst she would be quite happy to live an ordinary existence as an accountant, her father Jasper presses her to aim higher. Theo (Steph Clapp) opens act one with a high pitched speaking voice that never comes down; this leaves her nowhere to go vocally and hinders the believability of her character. Clapp’s performance is angry and her aggression seems unwarranted given the likeability of the other characters.

Jasper (Brendan Cooney) is believable in his role as an aging rocker wanting to rekindle past successes. His wife Babs (Josephine Pugh) is timid and a wonderful foil for her over-zealous husband. Theo’s boyfriend Wallace (Robbie Greenwell) is confident in his delivery as an internet troll. Maya Aleksandra as Anesidora rounded out the main cast.

The show is left flailing at times with no clear direction. A script that could have done with some trimming does not help. In order for a story to be believable it is important to become invested in the characters before you; this never happens. The core idea is viable, but I feel this show could have used further workshopping and rehearsal to reach its potential.

Kerry Cooper