Heavy Like the Weight of a Flame

Ernie Silva definitely moves like a dancer. Throughout this heart-rending story of an arduous upbringing in Brooklyn, the incredibly physical storyteller shows as much in the language of his movement as he tells with words. Music and books, though, are the media he credits with helping him grow beyond the drug fuelled destiny that would have been so easy for him to follow.

The simple and tiny set contains just some black blocks and a case for for his guitar, Savannah, his constant companion and the only girl who understands him. Along with Savannah, some dice and his memories and visions, he travels to find his place in the world; following in the footsteps and train tracks of many before, towards the Big Dipper in the sky, known, we learn, as the drinking gourd.

The story is entrancing and I was only slightly distracted by the style of spinning between each character change. You’ll learn a lot from this enjoyable 75-minute show, but maybe not the weight of a flame.

– Caroline Pearce