Brighton Fringe 2025
Locusts
Orange Works
Genre: LGBTQ+ Theatre, Theatre
Venue: The Lantern Theatre
Festival: Brighton Fringe
Low Down
An outstanding piece of theatre in which a man’s past resurfaces and we catch a glimpse into his inner turmoil
Review
The lights go up on a very “Brechtian” style stage – where three blocks are placed on top of each other. The first character we meet is Pastor Pete – played by Nick Blessley. A captivating portrayal of a pastor, which continues throughout the performance was quickly established. From the level of energy required for a pastor from this demograph of church to the way in which he walked, it was clear that the characterisation had been well thought out, and indeed was highly successful.
This piece is an outstanding example of theatre. From the simple set – enabling the audience to focus entirely on the actors and ensuring the production could be taken to a wide range of performance venues- to the extraordinarily sensitive balance of well thought out, well timed humour with the pain of the overall subject matter. The piece took us on a rollercoaster of a journey. Without giving away the plot, we get a feeling that it will focus on one situation, then another until we finally reach the conclusion. This adds to the suspense, it also heightens our emotions and we feel a sense frustration and desire to find the root of the issue.
Perhaps what makes the piece outstanding is the attention to intricate detail. The characters had been so well thought out. Every move was with precision, the authenticity of the portrayals were apparent and the chemistry between Ian Tucker- Bell and Pierse Stevens was so believable and authentic there didn’t appear to be any acting – this came across as the ” real deal”. One of the running gags about the word “literally” provided humour and depth to their relationship. The look of pain and fear on Stevens’s face when he asks Tucker- Bell a question about Tucker- Bell’s relationship to Pete was so moving it led to several of the audience – myself included – to shedding a tear. In addition, Stevens’s description of his mother when he was a child was so clear and concise it was as if she were stood in front of me. Cathy Bourne offered light relief as a friend, and we felt her embarrassment, sadness and frustration when she established something she had done was for a different purpose. Although her part may have been smaller than the others, the way in which it was portrayed was equally as effective and well thought out. The depth of character explored by Nick Blessley was equally gripping – based on the theme of the performance we should have hated him. Particularly when he asked something so unreasonable of Stephen. But somehow we didn’t – the portrayal evoked an understanding of a dilemma, a nativity combined with a lack of awareness, a sadness within the audience and provoked an alternative thought process to the rational of the character. Equally, two particular scene between Stevens, Blessley and Tucker – Bell – one in which Blessley is praying for Tucker- Bell and the second in which they meet as adults were very moving and thought provoking.
The sensitivity in which this topic was handled was really striking and apparent. Based on Tucker – Bell’s lived experience, the message / story was clear, poignant and it needed telling, to ensure a newer generation are aware of what happened and to ensure such practices are banned. The way in which the depth of the topic, the education of it that we need but the sense of ” light” to it supported the performance to have a far greater meaning, and I hope in years to come to see it taught on the national curriculum.
There wasn’t much this performance could do to improve. However, in the scene where Stephen and Jeff were video calling each other at times it was difficult to see the actors faces. Perhaps it could be considered lowering the phone so we can see the characters faces more clearly – or removing the phones entirely.
To conclude, this was an outstanding piece of theatre. It incorporated light and dark to perfection, enabled the audience to experience a real closeness and the well honed chemistry between two characters, and this created a hidden dimension to a very controversial topic. It deserved a far higher number of audience members than were present today.
