Reviews

Saturn Returns

| Off-West End |

5 November 2010

Set in a single room, seemingly trapped in time, Saturn Returns plays with the astrological phenomenon that the gas giant returns to the position it occupied at the time of one’s birth approximately every 30 years. We see the snapshotted life of Gustin Novak, accompanied by his carer at 88, daughter at 58 and wife at 28, all sensitively played by Lisa Caruccio Came.

Noah Haidle‘s play is beautifully written, intertwining the mundanity of everyday life with an exploration of loss and loneliness. Novak’s slightly curmudgeonly personality is developed carefully by the three actors portraying him (Richard Evans at 88, Nicholas Gecks at 58 and Christopher Harper at 28) with overlapping scenes allowing “58” and “88” to reflect, memories torturously presented before them.

Appearing to constantly crave the past, the pain-wrecked embodiments of Novak are forced to watch and remember his relationships falling apart. Dialogue ripples down the years with turns of phrase belonging to the two departed woman punctuating his conversation with the third. Evans delivers the most notably poignant and charismatic performance as the oldest incarnation of the character, the development of his twisted relationship with an equally impressive Came captivating to watch.