Icarus. You know, the one who made wings out of bird feathers and molten wax with his father so they could escape entrapment, only to fly too close to the sun, have the wings melt off his back and plummet to his death.
In this fresh take on the Greek myth Icarus survives, finding himself caught up in a new, phantasmagorical world where stars are people and where, like all good fairy tales, the woods scream danger. Backhand Theatre’s production combines physical theatre, dance, and aerial gymnastics.
Essentially the story here is a happy-ever-after, feel-good piece of pantomime circus, seemingly aimed at a younger audience. There’s an enthusiastic cast, although potentially over-rehearsed as there’s a slight lack of spontaneity in their delivery. Technically though, this is probably one of the best shows at the Fringe, with a delicious lighting rig and suitably functional set, combined with a clever costumes that hide a variety of harnesses and straps to connect the cast to whole host of wires and ropes that keep us looking up.
It’s well crafted, even if some cracks begin to appear in the script in order to cram in more aerial acrobatics. However, these stunts are flawless and breathtaking. There are slight lags in pace due to the health and safety restrictions of hoisting your cast into the air, but puppetry and dance are utilised with gusto, and impressively so at that, especially in the bird sequences during the second half. The use of various types of equipment for actors to gymnastically leap over the set is impressive, and rarely ineffective; conceptually, a post-fall Icarus discovering an even more magical world is a powerful, fresh approach to the original myth that shouldn’t be sniffed at.
