ACT II Festival, The Space - Online Review

★ ★ ★ ★

Reviewer - Harry

*Disclaimer: Gifted tickets in return for an honest review.

SHOWS TW: in some of the shows there were references and themes or mentions of all triggers stated - moderate language and references to racial and sexual violence, sexual assault, rape, homophobia, violence, death, suicide, betrayal, blood (mentioned), references to cancer, abortion, Sick (seen on stage) drinking, and mention of terrorism

ACT II is the largest student theatre festival. A non-profit organisation which takes over The Space in London with 12 brand new plays divided into three different time slots throughout the day. The festival is taking place across two weekends (8th & 15th April).

What is brilliant about this festival is the opportunity to live-stream it and that’s exactly what I did which made it hugely accessible. The plays are short running around 20 minutes long.

ACT II is a way to enable new work to be showcased, it's a bold and innovative way to give new writers a voice, and with myself wanting a career in the arts this is a great way to open eyes and encourage people to see what other careers there are in the industry.

The 12 plays were: The Sands Of Perpetual Longing and Mutual Dissatisfaction (by Sunny Cheong. Directed by Peter Smart), Lavender (by Isaac Banjoko. Directed by Demir Timuray), The Startup (by Dhanush Giridhar. Directed by Dominika Ucar.), Breathe (by Laure Bacchiocchi. Directed by Jasmine Silk), The Other Side (by Chloe Moore. Directed by Lenard Kelemen), Bliss Cafe (by Younes Dine. Directed by Sam Smith), While The World Goes Under (by Rosie Pierce. Directed by Anya Anderson Birch), The Art of Doing Nothing (by Reshmi Mohan. Directed by Maisie Allen ), New Horizons (by Supravo Rahman. Directed by Annalena Lipinski), Queer Switch (by Santiago Guerra. Directed by Mya Onwugbonu), Strangers (by Nell Rayner. Directed by Lucy Millett ), and Women. Life. Freedom (by Tarah McDermott. Directed by Clara Janssen).

This year’s festival focused on the main thread of new beginnings. Each show presented this in a definitive way that was engaging as one another, such as beginning a new job or a new relationship.

The writers used well-visioned ideas for their pieces and were able to connect with the audiences well either through live performances or streamed content. The stories of all the shows were really good and were interesting & inspiring. It's amazing what a 20-minute show. My mind responded with my own ideas that now I want to explore myself. Some of the pieces definitely needed a longer run time to further develop their ideas so that they were clearer so hopefully they will gain the opportunity to do this in the future.

Some of the plays like Bliss Cafe involved the audience and simplistic directing styles helped emphasise the storyline and the atmosphere of their piece. The Art of Doing Nothing incorporated audiences by allowing them to openly address their feelings. A lot of the pieces had minimal movement to allow the focus to be entirely on the storytelling and this was executed well.

A few shows stood out to me throughout the day… The Startup was one of them, the show began the whole day's lineup of shows.

Written by Dhanush Giridhar and directed by Dominika Ucar, the piece follows an international student approaching graduation. They enter a startup competition in the hope of a business visa and remaining within the UK. The play presents a specific battle between three people all fighting and wanting the same thing. The flow of this production was great as we navigated through the different pitches and the characters that are built within the overall presentation. There was a definitive determination of wanting a new start and wanting to win.

The dialogue enabled the presentations to be directly aimed towards the audience even if they weren’t meant to be. It allowed us as the audience to become totally immersed in the world of pitching. There was an added balance of funny moments too which allowed the short production not to be too serious and unfulfilling.

Another show that stood out to me was Queer Switch, by Santiago Guerra and directed by Mya Onwugbonu. Queer Switch tells the story of two men who are trapped within an escape room with only one way out, both need to learn about one another and put differences aside to get out - the show did have triggers of Homophobia, SA & Death.

What was great about this production was its entrance which was immediately gripping and exciting. The character “seeker” gets the two to come together walking down the centre aisle in the auditorium. This gripped me as it gave a high tension and made me feel on edge.

On the stage were a table and 3 chairs, presenting a realistic escape room setting..which I have never been in…(I’ll stick to the theatre I don’t like horror). The whole tone of the show was great, it was a great way to use the theme of using an escape room, which is something unusual and exciting and adds a layer of engagement. They used the 7 levels of tension, but also still sticking and carried the importance of the message and story without exaggerating the level of tension.

The script incorporated a lot of grit, with a message of confessing to what you have done.

The script was gritty with a message of confessing to what you have done. It felt that the seeker was not just the one bringing the pair to understand each other, but felt like a judge to the whole story like a courtroom. A lot of the transitions were a lot clearer between the characters than others and this definitely would add a more clear finish.

The third show that stood out to me was, While The World Goes Under by Rosie Pierce and directed by Anya Anderson Birch. Centred within a storm and the world falling apart around them. This show did have triggers of Sick (seen on stage) drinking, and abortion.

The script had depth and power in its delivery. It showed an important message very meaningfully and had tension throughout, it was very simply staged with just a living room setting and not a lot of movement which was good as it also helped the audience follow the story along easily.

All the shows on the day were great, they had an individual style, tone and different depths to them with some having elements that were interesting. Each of the stories were all heartwarming and had meaning to them, the 12 plays showed and addressed new beginnings in many daring ways and opened eyes to what you can do with just one theme.

A massive round of applause to the student technical team for the whole day, all of them did a brilliant job of creating atmospheric lighting and sound which helped the flashbacks/flashforwards and freeze frames.

Amy Tickner, the Artistic Director and the team of the festival have presented a well-thought-out ACT II festival. It was an inviting experience with jam-packed talent from writing, directing and performing. The festival is a great way for keen upcoming writers to go and watch.

All in all the ACT II festival is a great space for new theatre crafters and is a great way to have a platform for new work. I love to see new things and be surprised by the talent. I hope the best for all the writers and directors in the future.