I reckon the description of this new play from BBC Scottish Voices writer Mikey Burnett as a dark comedy is pushing the limits of the term. It begins with Hibs casual Pongo (Ruaraidh Murray) returning to the messy Leith flat he shares with brother Pete (Sean Langtree), blood on his knuckles and a possible murder behind him.
Pete is clearly vulnerable, though there’s never any mention of a diagnosis. Where Pongo spends his day being the local hardman and “Top Shagger 24/7”, Pete stays home to count cornflakes and gaze longingly out of windows. He’d love to come out with Pongo, but it soon becomes clear he’s almost a prisoner.
So whilst the two have banter for days, and indulge in a memorable game of “Who Wants To Be A Millionaire”, the power dynamic is anything but healthy. Pete just wants to know Pongo’s news, and Pongo wants to berate his brother for doing nothing with his days.
Murray and Langtree are both excellent, successfully generating a complex fraternal chemistry which makes the story believable. That they love each other is clear, though whilst Pete idolises Pongo, Pongo’s feelings for Pete are more…complicated.
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It’s a dynamic that expresses itself time and time again in their fraught, sometimes happy, but often toxic interactions. Tensions only heighten when Pete drags up memories of their abusive father.
We haven’t even got to the evil, abusive secret festering underneath it all, before Pongo has already threatened to send Pete away, much to the others’ tearful dismay.
Yet, with Director Grace Ava Baker’s sure touch, the drama steadily gathers momentum, hurtling the brothers towards disaster. Where some productions are overcautious with the content warnings, you should take those listed with this play at face value.
But for a door-knock ex-machina, it would need a few more. If Burnet wants to make the audience feel queasy about laughing at the brother’s antics earlier, he certainly does so! There’s certainly nothing whatsoever funny about the show’s final scenes. I think for some, the horrific truth underlying the play will simply prove too much.
Otherwise, this is an excellent new piece of writing which grabs an audience early before tightening its grip more and more and more.
Show details
Venue: Venue 26: Summerhall, 1 Summerhall, EH9 1PL (Google Maps)
Date(s): Thu 31 Jul to Mon 25 Aug (24 shows)
Time(s): 6:10pm (60 mins)
Age recommendation: 16+
Price: From £10 (concessions available)
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