Showing @ Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh, Thu 7 Feb only (touring)
After The Wave begins on an island apparently populated by Cbeebies presenters; multicoloured clothing and sugar-rush energised activity matched with polyglot chatter dominate the stage and all seems to be the embodiment of innocence and joy. Then in one moment darkness falls and everything changes when a tsunami hits their paradise.
The devastating immediacy of the change is well handled but spoilt by the introduction of unnecessary, albeit impressive, puppets to underscore the emotional point. It’s the show’s chief weakness that it tends to hammer home its messages too heavily – of the incoherence of grief and the need for hope – in what is otherwise a well performed and measured piece of work.
The interaction between the puppetry and the performers is a strength here and gives the piece a depth and emotional core, which alongside the score by Louis Abbot of Admiral Fallow, helps make this show much more affecting than it might otherwise have been. After The Wave is an honest, open and interesting attempt to examine how we deal with a world turned upside-down; that it’s broader than it is deep doesn’t detract from its ability to engage and make you think about those you love.