We Have A Dream at theSpace at Symposium Hall Review

Even though Scotland failed to get past the group stages of this year’s World Cup, there is no doubt that the country was full of hope and joy at just being there at all. Fast Snails’ We Have a Dream encapsulates that feeling as it follows four friends, edging thirty, as they head to Germany to watch Scotland play in the Euros.

Opening with a fairly quick introduction to the audience through a fourth wall break. We meet the boys as they arrive in Germany, only to realise that their tickets are fake and they will probably end up watching the games in a pub. There they meet a local girl who instantly becomes one of the lads and is soon a featured character in their trip.

I will say that some lines have better payoff if you know a bit about Scottish football, but there is a good lot of Scottish slang and jokes to go around. For a show centred around football, the second half moves away and becomes more about the four men and the demons they all face, delving into some very serious topics. This does lead to a lack of comedy as the play progresses and never really picks back up.

The four male actors gel well together as a group, knowing how each other tick, yet struggle with how to open up to one another. With what is explored through the show, it might have been a nice addition to extend the fourth wall breaking narrative throughout the show, acting as if telling the story to someone or writing it all down.

We Have a Dream has the making of a fringe classic, needing fewer scene jumps and a few more light-hearted moments; the piece holds itself together with the joys and sadness of being a Scottish football fan.

We Have A Dream plays at theSpace at Symposium Hall until 15 August.

★★★