Jake Mace
Content Warnings: Discussion of violence, bullying and self-harm.
Sent once again into Ms McBride’s office, fifteen-year old Dylan is awaiting his next punishment. However, when Ms McBride finds out that he stood up for her against homophobic bullying in the playground, the pair develop an unlikely connection and refuge within one another. Marley Hunter’s intrepid and insightful script explores the blurred lines between doing what’s best for someone and following protocol – disadvantaged Dylan sees no light at the end of the tunnel, but Ms McBride is determined to help him turn his life around, even if it means bending the rules around confidentiality.
Taking place mostly in the four walls of McBride’s office, we witness vignettes over a year of the duo’s lives, seeing heartache, abuse, scandal and redemption. Hunter’s script is tightly wound around the pair’s relationship that soon becomes as surprisingly heartfelt as it does complex. When McBride tosses the rulebook aside with the goal of rescuing Dylan from his tragic home circumstances, the pair both have to confront major questions about their identities – difficult ones both morally and socially, that Hunter treats with care and compassion. There’s a great deal of sensitivity for the predicaments of both characters on display, and a script that depicts them as complex, often difficult people, which is to great effect and credit.
The show takes time to explore the intersectionalities of being queer, working class, marginalised and young, and explores how we root ourselves in those who show us exceptional kindness, and how they can guide our lives not only to sanctuary but to changing our worldviews. This is not a process that comes easily, as McBride and Dylan soon find out. The exploration of Dylan’s sexuality and identity shies away from labelling either of our characters and in doing so, offers the gold standard in understanding queerness itself as an identity on stage.
Holly Dunbar’s direction shines best in the tense moments as the duo’s unconventional connection unwind at the end of the piece, where members of our audience gasped as they realised what had been bubbling under the surface rises to the top. Dunbar takes time to engage us with each character’s story but roots the physical dimensions of the piece firmly in the drama between our two central players, to great effect as we come to the final moments of the story. The ending leaves us with many more questions that answers – finality is a wrought concept in queerness and in the human condition, and the ability to walk away wondering what either of these characters do next with their lives is one to treasure.
It feels a little at times that Gather Round Theatre are still cutting their teeth in finding the fullest extents of their theatrical language – there are moments that feel jaunted because of continuous and repeated black outs, alongside a repetitive feeling that emerges from always revisiting the same set of circumstances, seeing Dylan arrive at McBride’s office. While this repetition could be utilised to create further impact, it feels often as though this plot device was underused, and that the constant black outs hindered the narrative rather than segmenting it neatly.
Simplicity often unpacks complex themes concisely, and in the case of Nae Guid, Dylan’s story is presented with candour and care. Jack Rippon’s central performance is commanding, with his facial expressions often telling a deeper story than the dialogue, and he takes precision and care in unpacking Dylan’s weighty home life through a spirited portrayal and characterisation that neatly defines this stage of pubescent life. Shanna L-Maxwell’s McBride adds depth and nuance, and similarly takes time to acquaint us with this character before the plot unwinds. The performance of a drunk McBride is impressive, given the infamously difficult task of performing a drunk character while still moving the story along, L-Maxwell does it perfectly.
There are plotlines and threads outside the duo’s relationship that feel left a little in the shadows – we only see glimpses of Dylan’s feelings for a Tesco worker which he is struggling to come to terms with, and I’d have liked to seen a greater depth of understanding given to them, as it sometimes comes across a little superficial. Similarly, we don’t greatly unpack McBride’s complex home life, instead it is often thrown a little to the wayside for the sake of developing the central plot. There’s a momentous story waiting to burst out here, though it feels as if Gather Round Theatre may need to develop their worldbuilding and theatrical language further to help it find root.
Overall, this is a greatly intrepid and engaging piece of drama unpacking weighty and marginalised themes with purpose and vivacity.
Recommended Drink: Whatever you do, don’t end up swigging any vodka in Ms McBride’s office!
You can catch Nae Guid one last time at Dundee Fringe, tonight at Sweet @ Keiller Centre from 18:00 (60mins). Tickets are available through the Dundee Fringe Online Box Office.
Lamesha Ruddock
Jasmine Silk
