Inescapable
Red venue, find showtimes
Inescapable opens with two adult friends having an argument about a box that one of them found in the other’s closet. The two then repeat the argument, and repeat it again and again.
The entire show is about the two characters (played by Martin Dockery and Joe Paterson) continually having this argument and being “reset” via unconscious time travel without taking a break between each “reset.” More small details about the friends are revealed each time – details that expose the lies that both men have been keeping from each other.
While the actual memories of having the argument are reversed, the anger is not, allowing both of the actors to explore many different motivations for why we humans like to pick fights. Both men are utterly dedicated to their parts; they both spoke almost non-stop for the entirety of the 45-minute show. The setting of a boring holiday party which the two have ducked away from imparts an air of claustrophobia into to the small Red Venue, which then successfully serves its function to create palpable tension.
The show, written by Dockery, moves at a fast pace with writing reminiscent of the work of playwright Neil Labute. A possible issue is that some lines went so quickly that they were hard to understand immediately, and by the time that they’ve been figured out, five more lines have been delivered. This actually did improve as the show went on, with the dialogue feeling more deliberate near the end.
It is difficult to adequately describe just how fluidly the story moved and how adept the actors were with their transitions between “resets.” The continual flow of conversation was captivating and worth seeing multiple times. Inescapable is the definition of unique small-scale work that the Fringe is so good at hosting.
Read all of Watermark’s coverage of the 2016 Orlando Fringe Theatre Festival here.
