Review: To Be Straight With You
Venue: The Lowry
Date Reviewed: 28th June, 2008
Verbatim style theatre sometimes fails as it it often attracts a target audience who do not need to be convinced by the central arguments. Recently though thought-provoking pieces like What I Heard About Iraq have attempted to redress the balance via the uniqueness of the staging.
DV8‘s To Be Straight With You is so viscerally challenging that it leaves you feeling shocked and stirred, as opposed to simply talked at. But there is so much more to this dazzling piece of theatre, than mere facts and figures.
Based around 85 interviews and a series of vox pops, with people living in the UK, DV8 explore some of the myths surrounding homosexuality in 2008. For example, gay Police Officers are told to be “less gay” when speaking to members of the Muslim community.
Every word you hear comes directly from the interviewees and this is given many visually-arresting backdrops, including a 3D world globe, as we explore states where homosexuality equals the death penalty. Another excellent element features an Asian man skipping with real vigour and precision as you hear how his father reacted to him coming out. You soon realise why this man cannot stand still for more than a couple of seconds.
But it’s not all maudlin, there plenty of humour also and my own particular favourite features a man’s love of dance, which is punctuated by Shakira’s “Hips Don’t Lie.” The dance elements throughout this piece are understated, allowing you to hang onto every poignant and frightening word.
The show has a few problems, namely the lighting and visual window dressing, at times so busy, that it leaves you squinting for a decent sight-line. Also, many of the play’s prejudiced voices would never dream of watching the show, meaning the powerful messages only reach the converted.
But, To Be Straight With You still remains a shocking reminder that for all our claims that we are a tolerant society, the UK has a hidden truth.
Refreshingly though, this is far from preachy, as this stunning show has tears, laughter and many breathtaking moments.
I hope that it attracts people from all walks of life as it is stimulating stuff and thoroughly deserved the ecstatic audience reception on opening night at the Lowry.
-Glenn Meads
June 30th, 2008 at 6:28 am
I’d add a star to the four awarded above. The world’s most pioneering physical theatre company are back on tremendous form, and have delivered a visually stunning piece that refuses to be confined by the accepted boundaries of the form. Quite how they’ve found a company that can move this well, and deliver text with such clarity, is a mystery. Thematically, it’s a sobering reminder of some of the more harsh realities of the world we live in, though flecked with moments of uplifting humour, it’s ultimately a warm and hopeful piece. With demanding precision, and frequent moments of audacious invention, this is a daring and inspiring piece that should be seen by as many people as possible.