Showing @ Summerhall, Edinburgh until Sun 24 Aug (not 11, 18) @ 13:55
Dogstar Theatre Company present Factor 9, a story that tells of a horrendous miscarriage of justice. The audience is taken on a dramatic journey that sincerely depicts how contaminated blood can spread to innocent haemophiliacs and effect the lives of unsuspecting and neglected people. Overall Factor 9 is a bold and ambitious attempt to convey a vast and important story that never reaches a satisfying conclusion.
The stage and set design is as bold as the subject with large background monitors displaying facts and figures along with photographs of various doctors and academics involved in the injustice behind the story. It is performed by Stewart Porter and Matthew Zajac, who encompass several characters throughout. Their enthusiasm and dedication to the subject matter is the main driving force and keeps the audience gripped to their predicament.
The text is based on the testimonies of Bruce Norval and Robert Mackie two innocent haemophiliacs who were infected with the HIV virus through blood transfusions. At times the delivery can feel faced paced and relentless giving the audience little time to digest and deliberate the emotion behind the story. Never the less Factor 9 does Norval’s and Mackie’s testimonies justice and brings an important and tragically overlooked story to the stage.