With no plot developed from the beginning to the end and no characters invented, in the wake of NASTY, Katja de la Fuente, Amy Stephenson-Yankuba, and Rio Montana Topley of Succulent Theatre Company present their new autobiographical production of Funeral Teeth. Not only are the stories they tell true, but the substance and the way they tell them make it impossible not to empathise with them.
This is a piece about loss. Throughout this production, Katja, Amy, and Rio share their stories that many people have also been through. For example, the less-than-ideal first sex experiences, teeth that shouldn't have fallen out, menstrual cups that won't come out, miscarriages, getting high, and losing someone they love. The three girls take turns telling their stories. Most of the time, the other two girls play along to act out the story, and there are also times when they just listen quietly, shedding tears along with the storyteller.
The staging is very simple, with just a wooden table and two wooden chairs, but it never gives the impression that the stage is limiting their play. As the story is told, these pieces of furniture can become a bed, a bathtub, or even a car. The lighting also changes with the mood of the storyteller, sometimes dark, sometimes colourful. Lots of pop music is used in this piece, and each song fits the scene perfectly, quickly pulling the audience into the atmosphere they are describing.
Whilst watching this production, you often become aware that you are invited into the environment as an audience member, and that is definitely not a bad thing. During Funeral Teeth, the three girls often interact directly with the audience, sometimes asking them if they've had similar experiences, sometimes asking if they're enjoying the show, and sometimes even asking them to look at the scars on her eyebrows. In one of the scenes, they even ask an audience member to come on stage and play one of the main characters in the story. Because its subject matter connects with every audience member, the action of involving the audience at all times doesn't feel redundant at all, but instead makes the whole atmosphere very cosy, and even creates a little sense of community.
Katja, Amy and Rio perform in such a sincere state that it's as if they're considering the audience as their best friends, pouring their hearts out to these dozens of friends, painting a colourful and incredibly honest picture of their experiences. There are also times when they don't speak, but simply use their bodies to express their emotions along with the music. This expression of emotion is sometimes even more precise than words, and both their movements and the message they deliver are very beautiful.
When reading the synopsis of this production, it's hard not to think it's going to be a play filled with sadness. But instead, the audience laughs way more than they shed tears. It is hard not to be saddened by many of the stories, obviously, but there also comes a faint sense of comfort and healing after listening to these stories together. Although the content of their stories is not very in-depth, and can even be said to be a bit fragmented, because each event can be empathised with almost just a few strokes of description, digging deeper into a certain number of events becomes not so necessary. Perhaps, in this warm storytelling party, the most important thing to be shared is not what the story is really like, but the feelings that people share. And there will always be people who will listen to such stories filled with the most honest feelings.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4*)
Gifted tickets in return for an honest review
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