Strange Town

Her

02/10/25

Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh

High school can be a minefield for some students, as Her (Eleanor McMahon) discovers when partially- clothed photographs of her start to appear on social media and are gleefully shared around her class, fuelling heartless gossip and ill-founded assessments of her character.

But who is to blame? Is it her so-called boyfriend, Ryan, who took the photos without her consent? Is it his friends, who shared them without his? Is it Him (Reno Cole), the boy she grew up alongside and who has always seemed so supportive but doesn’t stand up for her now? She knows that he has problems at home and that he sometimes struggles with his own issues, but how could he let her down like this?

Meanwhile, B1 (Zara-Louise Kennedy) and B2 (Alex Tait) are always on hand to analyse things, making snarky, acerbic observations like some kind of teenage Greek chorus, moving swiftly from role to role as they deliver their characters’ different reactions to the situation.

Strange Town’s tightly-structured production, written by Jennifer Adam and directed by Steve Small, is an object lesson in how to deliver a polemic and should be required viewing for teenagers across the land. Tight, propulsive and perfectly-pitched, its anchored by excellent performances by its four young actors, the serious message punctuated (but never diluted) by the quirky witticisms expertly delivered by Kennedy and Tait.

In the age of social media, moral lines can sometimes seem blurred, but Her sets out its premise with absolute clarity. As the show embarks on its third tour, its message seems more relevant than ever – and, while it’s clearly aimed at young audiences, it’s a production that speaks to people of all ages.

4.5 stars

Philip Caveney

And… And… And…

07/10/23

Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh

Though still at high school, Cassie (Caroline McKeown) is already a committed eco-warrior, working tirelessly to organise regular beach clean-ups in her locality. She takes every opportunity to lobby big corporations to plead on behalf of environmental causes and lately has even taken to making her own clothes from natural fibres. But as the climate change disasters inexorably mount, she finds herself increasingly obsessed with the subject. And it’s an obsession that threatens to overpower everything else in her life.

Meanwhile, Cassie’s best friend, Claire (Tiana Milne-Wilson), has her own pressing issues to contend with. Her mother is steadily succumbing to a deadly lung disease after years of smoking cigarettes and is no longer able to work. The final demands for rent and electricity are coming in on an almost daily basis and Claire desperately needs to find a paying job. The only possibility she’s discovered is the chance to apply for an apprenticeship at a locally-based multi-national plastics manufacturer, a company that she knows Cassie openly despises.

Isla Cowan’s And… And… And… is a topical story from Strange Town Theatre, one that isn’t afraid to address the horrifying scale of its central premise and to openly accept the impossibility of finding an easy solution – indeed, there’s a strangely satisfying meta-twist in this tale that comments on its own artificiality, the very idea of finding an ‘answer’ within the confines of a fifty-minute play.

The two leads give compelling and nuanced performances and the duo’s friendship feels utterly palpable. This is a youthful and exuberant approach to the subject, created for and by the generation who have been handed the poisoned chalice of a devastated planet. The frustration they feel is written large. Katie Innes’s simple but effective stage design is created mostly from heaps of detritus, an approach that serves as a constant reminder of the play’s theme, while Steve Small handles the direction with aplomb.

The play’s conclusion – that everyone needs to do whatever they can to reduce their personal carbon footprints and work together towards a more optimistic future – may not be exactly earth-shattering, but nevertheless, it comes through loud and clear.

4 stars

Philip Caveney