Theatre: Killing Me Softly

Date: August 17th, 2009 Author: Martin Walker
Category(s): Theatre: Killing Me Softly
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Theatre
***
Killing Me Softly
Gilded Balloon

Richard Fry’s follow up to last year’s critically acclaimed fringe debut, Bully, explores similar themes of masculinity and domestic violence.  And like Bully it’s a one-man-show told entirely in verse.

It’s not an easy watch.  Brutal domestic torture is depicted against a backdrop of 80s karaoke numbers and dirty Bernhard Manning style jokes.  It’s hard to feel sympathy for the protagonist whose disconnection with other human beings is not properly explained or understood.

That said, whilst the darkness of the subject matter is uncomfortable, the rhyming is mostly sharp and occasionally beautiful.

Originally conceived as a two-hander, co-star Lizzie Roper apparently pulled out late due to TV commitments.  Fry and director Sarah Chew should be congratulated for what must have been some tricky last second re-working.

Killing Me Softly feels more theatrical than Bully, but it’s less engaging.  However, the future looks bright for this talented writer / performer.

MW