We all, I am sure, have suffered from insomnia at some point in our lives and so the synopsis of (Asleep in) Disorder in the Fringe programme sounded provocatively interesting. It was deemed to be "a representation of what sufferers of the sleeping disorder ‘night terrors' might experience and how it affects those around them."
The show began interestingly enough. With no speech we witnessed a man being plagued by demons in the shape of three women who, with tantalising movements, taunted him throughout his insomniac night as he attempted to attain the unattainable. After this episode, two women - whom we presumed to be part of the audience - started to participate in the show with general tittle-tattle. The show then evolved into a monologue with another man who started to talk about the banality of trying to maintain friends, trying to come to terms with being a solitary being, and contemplating the role of audience.
The show is supposed to illustrate how ordinary people feel but the content in the script was no different from a conversation you could hear in the pub. If it is a theatre production, then we have to experience dramatic content. And overall, this is what was missing from the show.
Times: 7.25pm, 15,16,17 August