The Bane trilogy - a one man tribute to film noir and American gangsters featuring hitman Bruce Bane who ‘always gets his man’ in a series of perilous exploits - is a cult hit and perennial favourite with Fringe goers. In Bane 2, Bane must fight an old schoolmate who has been changed into a super-villain by toxic waste. It’s all the thrills and spills of a comic book with a story of friendship at its heart, plus one awesome dude who dispatches bodies left, right, and centre.
Performer Joe Bone works up a sweat as he switches between characters, each with precise physicalities and perfectly pitched vocals. It is always enjoyable to watch someone working hard and Bone has to work like an athlete in this. Of course that’s not the only reason this is enjoyable. It is also funny and exciting - well balanced between parody and tribute. Much of the humour lies in the transferral of film techniques to bare bones staging. There is no need for set or props when you have an actor this skilled and prepared to work that hard. As the audience invest so much with their imaginations in the performance, the story can go anywhere and do anything, allowing for instantaneous scene changes and cinematic cutting between characters and situations.
Kudos must also go to Ben Roe, the guitarist who scores the action live on stage. His strumming builds atmosphere and energy, perfectly complementing the unravelling action.
The crowd lap it up and it is easy to see why. At Fringe 2012 Bone has performed Bane 1 and 2, with Bane 3 running for the rest of the month. There is no need to have seen these in the correct order, each will be enjoyable as a stand alone event. See it if you get the chance.