Eve Miller
As we enter the theatre, we are greeted by a grinning swan, who interacts with each of us individually, gobbling down the papers that had been handed to us by front of house staff upon which we had written down the traits of our perfect hero. This production aimed to deconstruct the classic Swan Lake plot, to critique systemic sexism and patriarchal ideals that are perpetuated through classic, canonical works. Despite these noble intentions, this production fell flat-footed.
The bulk of the production consisted of forced and uncomfortable audience interactions, strung together with ropey plot and repetitive movements and honking that felt performative and obvious. The strongest sections were the moments of ballet, which were danced beautifully, and the storytelling sections where she recounted her version of the plot of Swan Lake, which was moving and well told. Creator and performer Lauren Brady also gave an interesting and effective swan impression, with engaging movement and vocalisations that recalled this ungainly waterfowl. If these elements had been expanded and the audience interactions re-tooled, then this could have been a far more effective production.
As it was, there were frequent, confusing, and pointless moments of audience interaction which felt incredibly pressurised. The “mating dance” that we were all to partake in, the honking in agreement to things that I didn’t want to agree with, and the third-act giving out of stars to random members of the audience did nothing to advance the plot, themes, or character development, and everything to bring me out of the moment and into my own head and body in discomfort.
A bigger problem was the attempt at forcing audience complicity in the patriarchal systems that the production critiqued by forcing the audience to interact with the performer in a certain way, and then spinning it around on us in a contrived “gotcha!” moment. This occurred on many occasions throughout the play, but a recurring one was Brady turning to face the back wall, bending over and exposing herself, and then turning around and implying that we are voyeurs and comparing us to previously mentioned abusive male characters, and yet none of us chose to watch her do that – in fact, after the first occurrence, I averted my eyes in discomfort.
Further, there was a deeply uncomfortable section of simulated sex with a prop reed, during which she made reference to prop reeds that she had handed to two poor audience members that she had forced to get on stage and be her potential suitors earlier in the show. These audience members had both tried very hard to be helpful and accommodating in their participation, and I ultimately felt very sorry for them and unsure what to take from the situation.
I also found the production to be rooted in a branch of feminism that came across to me as entrenched in heteronormativity – an easy trap to fall into when adapting a fairy tale that relies heavily on gender roles, but many things throughout the production referred to gender in a way that made me uneasy. Brady began the performance by pointing at audience members and saying that they were swans (women) or frogs (men), and suggesting that if you weren’t a frog or swan then you could be foliage, which felt like a misguided attempt at including non-binary people that was ultimately reductive.
Bold, brash, and unapologetic, with the best of intentions, ultimately, SWAN? didn’t quite hit the mark, leaving me underwhelmed and vaguely uncomfortable.
Drink recommendation: Sambuca – bold and polarising.
You can catch SWAN? at Iron Belly at Underbelly, Cowgate from 31st July to 24th August at 14:10 (60 mins). Tickets are available through the EdFringe Online Box Office.
Jake Mace
Lamesha Ruddock
Jasmine Silk
