Broke Review

The Paper Bird’s latest production Broke, will leave a lasting impression in my memory. It was a brilliant production because debt is particularly current issue and the company’s ability to use play and storytelling techniques made understanding an arguably complex issue simple and accessible. The company showed the issue in its entirety by talking about the country and its relationship to debt, the politics, the history as well as individual personal experiences. The company’s use of verbatium text alongside the actor’s own testimony brought a real conversational realism to the piece, showing how it is an issue that affects all of us and not a select few. The three actors, Jemma, Kylie and Sean portrayed many different roles with great attention to detail and used the character of Sally to create a through line.

The concept of play was established effectively through the use of toys such as a toy telephone, a bunk-bed and an interactive piano. An image that was used throughout was sweets. It was the first thing the actors spent their money on, and the link with Charlie and The Chocolate Factory and the idea of winning the lottery. This imagery was effective as it also linked to testimony from the young boy who said in the future ‘there will be chocolate bars that will make you fly’.

One of the best moments in the production, for me, was the highly emotive juxtaposition of the recorded negative thoughts surrounding people on benefits with the description of Sally’s dream house and desire to be able to treat her son. Conveying the real human stories of people struggling to make ends meet, not those cheating the system. Broke ensured that the voices of the people who were interviewed were heard.

We, at Live Arts Connect wish The Paper Birds all the very best of luck with the rest of their tour.

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Website: http://www.thepaperbirds.com/

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By Daniel Seath (Head Editor at Live Arts Connect)

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