As Guardian columnist George Monbiot has written, denial is essential for psychological wellbeing. Were we to really face up to the reality of life’s many dangers, we simply couldn’t keep it together; yet deep down we all know how easily it might have been us who, say, were the victim of a terrorist attack. In a sense, we’re all suffering from post 9/11 survivor guilt, and it’s this very modern anxiety that’s at the heart of Ursula Rani Sarma’s new play.

Having walked away from a bus explosion physically unscathed but psychologically damaged, artist Daniel (Brian Ferguson) suddenly finds his abstract paintings lacking in utility. As he puts together a controversial exhibition involving the passengers who didn’t survive, he becomes an overnight sensation, but it only adds to the survivor guilt. Can he and fellow survivor LJ (Suzanne Donaldson), an exotic-dancer turned paraplegic in love with Daniel, cope with their new lives?

We’re all suffering from 9/11 survivor guilt

Director Dominic Hill’s pared-down show is filled with quality but ultimately struggles to hold the attention over a two-hour-plus running time. Rani Sarma’s script engages with some tough issues, and a strong ensemble of brave performances brings it all vividly to life, but an overload of ideas leaves the show in desperate need of a stronger through-line. You might also wonder whether the solipsism of the characters is something worthy of such lengthy drama; a play exploring the reasons why people want to blow up British buses may seem worth more of our time than one about how strange we feel that it wasn’t us.

Traverse Theatre, 8 – 24 Oct