A journey on the Underground. Let’s face it, disorienting at the best of times. And Circle of Spears bring a touch of Twin Peaks to subterranean London in this gloriously weird piece, written by Ute Orgassa.
When Brian boards at Kings Cross he’s Not a Happy Bunny. He’s looking forward to a pleasant few minutes of private melancholy in the suspended realm of Public Transport. You really feel for him.
Enter Vivian, a so-called ‘Guardian’ with a habit of gatecrashing Brian’s reality unannounced. Time works differently for Guardians, obviously. Vivian’s as a likely to have just come from 1942 as 2042. And she’s a cross between toxic positivity and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. ‘You’re on the right track, but in the wrong reality’ she helpfully exclaims. Amazingly, Brian’s only rude to her the first time.
Other characters making an appearance include swordfighting instructor Walter, another ‘Guardian’; a caretaker who almost turns Brian into furniture and my personal favourite Casey, a slinky construction worker who doesn’t speak but winds around the stage in hi vis, reggae booming from his portable ghetto blaster.
Are the characters parts of Brian’s psyche? Or travellers from other dimensions? Either way, they diagnose the poor man as a ‘Bumbler’ – someone who isn’t in control of the direction of their life. Which stop should he get off at? And what happens when the train reaches ‘Turnaround’?
An absurd, Lynchian delight.
Claire Gulliver
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