Edinburgh Fringe 2024
Low Down
Addict is a one man play acted by Craig Barclay and written by Tony Voller. The show follows a upstanding citizen and paramedic who posts a tweet in an attempt to fight sexism that goes viral. The show follows how this character makes an alter ego to fight his online abuser and the mire he gets himself in to once he goes down this path. The play also confronts our relationship with social media in the modern age.
Review
Tony Voller’s “Addict” follows John: a paramedic, Good at his job and an upstanding citizen in the eyes of the many. Yet in an attempt to kick back against online sexism he posts a tweet that inadvertently goes viral thus throwing him in to a mire of problems – an obsession with fame, adulation, and fighting online hatred. This play makes us think hard about how we portray ourselves online and how the road to redemption can sometimes be a slippery slope (the term comes to mind- pick your battles). Addict is a hard-hitting piece which delves in to the darker side of human nature exposing the dangers of our relationship with social media in the modern age.
This one man show is portrayed very impressively by the charismatic actor Craig Barclay. As the audience make their way to their seats Barclay is already in character sitting pensively staring downwards not saying a word until the house is full then jumps in to action. This really is a very effective use of suspense and grips viewers from the very start. Barclay also mesmerizes the audience with his versatility switching between characters throughout – first is John the upstanding citizen and paramedic, then is his alter ego a macho type with little respect for women and people in general (Perhaps Jekyll and Hyde influence from Voller). The change in Craig’s tone, demeanor and mannerisms are impressive. The acting is so believable and enthralling that the audience almost forget that there is only one man on the stage.
As I sat watching this play it struck me how much the actor Craig Barclay had the audience in the palm of his hand. This was partly due to his extreme competence as an actor/his charisma but also because of Tony Voller’s writing. The play is extremely relatable to anyone living in society today in some sort of way. In today’s world if we have not been affected by cyberbullying we at least know someone who has. For this reason the house was quiet: A good thing because the audience were listening in deep thought and introspection about the topics raised. The play also touched upon how we can forget our own personal lives being consumed by social media which certainly made me think twice about my phone usage once I left the theater. As well as making me think harder about these serious issues there was also space for a few laughs at times in this play which was nice too.
Overall I think that the themes raised in “Addict” by playwright Tony Voller are universal and relatable to everyone in the theater making the piece very gripping for all, not only that the show challenges us all to confront ourselves, our vices and the versions of ourselves that we portray to others. The combination of the themes discussed and Craig Barclay’s magnetism and dynamic acting make for a very appealing and thoughtful play. Hard hitting, Gripping and charismatically played: I highly recommend this play to viewers.
