Theatre review: Passengers, Summerhall, Edinburgh
Passengers, Summerhall, Edinburgh * * *
This piece by Vacuum Theatre and writer Kit Redstone is like a more sophisticated and adult version of the same concept, with three characters squabbling and sharing control within the head of Max, a character with Dissociative Identity Disorder who has had an episode, a flashpoint, in a cafe, where he has inexplicably thrown a chair against a window.
The cluttered mind of Max is represented by a scaffolding arrangement on the stage, through which the three fragments of his psyche climb and clamber, occasionally coming together in synchronised unity. The three performers – Neil Chinneck, Jessica Clark, Redstone himself – bear different and sometimes conflicting personalities, and there is a truth to it all which comes from Redstone’s own experiences with DID and a treatment which encourages the patient to view themselves as being comprised of different personalities. The nature of the piece as a devised work with contributions from all involved gives it a fragmentary air; but then, that is much of the show’s point.
Until 25 August