Showing @ Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh until Sat 16 Nov @ 19:30
The ‘spy in a bag’ investigation recently concluded that MI6 agent Gareth Williams’ death was probably an accident, results that contradict last year’s coroner’s report of unlawful killing. Whether we (the public) or even Scotland Yard will ever learn the truth remains to be seen. ‘How well can you ever know someone who lies for a living?’ asks Dawn King’s new play, Ciphers. The play examines the events surrounding the suspicious death of British Intelligence Officer, Justine (Grainne Keenan).
Beginning with Justine’s interview to the Intelligence Service, we see her quickly work her way up the ladder. Scenes from before her death are interwoven with those from after, in which her sister pushes for answers: who was Justine and why was she killed?
The play is constructed in such a way that the 4 actors are double cast and the narrative hinges on the transition between the characters being smooth, but subtle costume changes are at points confusing and disrupt the flow of the piece. The episodic structure is enhanced by Blanche McIntyre’s staging, using screens rolled across the stage to allow for quick scene changes and keeping up the pace. However, the momentum is stalled by the interval which, for a 90 minute play, is unnecessary.
Ciphers makes many in-roads to politics and has huge potential to address, or even acknowledge, the bigger picture of British foreign policy and relationships with other major global powers. Instead, it shies away from that and relies on the ‘human element’ to carry it through, the climax is disappointing and predictable. MI6 operations are kept quiet, and what gets reported is not necessarily the whole story. Ciphers could have done more to engage intellectually with the subject matter, rather than emotionally. You can know someone who lies for a living, if you understand what they’re lying for. And that question was never asked.
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