Exploring the aftermath of losing a loved one, this is a carefully crafted pair of monologues. While overall there is a set of three monologues, only two run per day, with the same two running until mid-Fringe and then swapping. The two seen on the day of review were With Grace and After the Service. Clive will be performed by Arran R Hawkins when After the Service swaps out.
With Grace features a young woman grieving the loss of her baby daughter, not long after the baby was born. Looking back at her own life, she acknowledges that she bullied a fellow child during her school days and only now is recognising the impact on that child’s life, and wonders if this is a penalty for her own life in the present. The nuances in Hannah Marina’s performance are delicately balanced, and as the story unfolds, she handles with skill the difficult juxtaposition of explaining the loss of a child and the actions she took part in towards a fellow school mate when young.
After the Service has a different energy. The character here is mourning the loss of her husband of 47 years. It has been some time since the loss, but what is described here is again wonderfully nuanced in Gillie Stoneham’s performance as she travels the journey between humour and sadness, very much like real life. The exploration of the feeling that comes when we are alone in a space, that unknown but distinct awareness where the lack of a presence of another is somehow sensed, felt rather than seen or heard, is sensitively carried out. The subtlety of Arran R Hawkins’ text is clear and specific: the underlying messages as well as the immediate text give us food for thought.
Show Time: 10-24 Aug (not 11,18) @ 13:00-14:00
Gilded Balloon at Appleton Tower
Ticket Prices: £10-£12
https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/after-the-service-tales-of-love-and-loss
Warnings: Contains distressing or potentially triggering themes. Strong language/swearing. Space Accessibility: Wheelchair Accessible Toilets. May not apply to all performances.
Age Suitability: 14+ (Guideline). Babes in arms policy: Babies do not require a ticket. Policy applies to: Children under 2 years. Age restrictions: No under 16s after 21:00