Still Alive

The Greek myth Psyche and Eros is the inspiration for this play; in particular the trials of Psyche in her quest to ascertain the secret mystery of eternal youth. The temptation to be distracted from a quest is particularly elicited through the abstract text in this production. The performance highlights the idiosyncratic nature of a journey characterised by wandering and easily wafts into unexpected psychological territories. Words are used like brittle sound, and they are accompanied by enticing visuals. There is an appeal to the unconscious and the play frequently taps into the surreal energy of a dreamlike state.

Louise O’Dwyer has a powerful gaze that is turned back on to the audience in a manner that is sometimes amusing, sometimes disconcerting and often penetrative. The ritualistic nature of repetitive, everyday activities becomes fully estranged and fragmented in this piece. Thoughts, feelings and hypnotic movement are freely allowed to drift across the stage in a bewitching fashion. The humour of this text, and its performers, is wry and each gesture is designed to heighten the satire and irony. Sometimes it is easy to meander along with this play and abandon oneself to its aimlessness and other times it evokes feelings of alienation.  Still Alive is a quizzical theatrical experiment and operates much like a thought provoking riddle; a mystery that is not really designed to be solved.

Patricia Di Risio