Bath University’s Student Theatre Society presents the story of a struggling writer, aided by three contrary muses, desperate to create the best work of fiction ever to be performed - a promising premise. Unfortunately, the company fails to impress time and time again.
The script is poorly written with stabs at failing humour that add absolutely nothing to the piece, but rather waste fifty minutes of the audiences’ time and money. Costumes and props looked very unprofessional; the props were handmade and looked like something a 5-year-old child created in an art lesson. The costumes of the three muses comprised of jeans and a white top, each with a print representing their specific trait: a piece of paper with writing on it for Practice; a thought bubble for Memory; and a musical note for Song. All of these would be unnecessary had the actors embodied their characters. These aspects of the performance simply managed to make it look shoddy, much like the script itself.
The acting, in combination with the embarrassing script, finally topped off the high school drama vibe already hanging in the air. It is always suspicious when a company continuously alludes to practitioners and acting techniques within a play, but it is even more so when they are alluded to in such an amateur way. The blocking was unstructured as the three muses appeared to simply wander around the stage; their physicality was the only element of characterisation that was more apparently developed. Song continually swayed from side to side in a distracting way, while the other two muses often stood with arms crossed. The other two parts were played as well as the script allowed.
I do not like to be negative about a piece that the company have spent time and effort in devising and, while I am aware that the company is not professional, I believe Bath University Student Theatre Society could have pulled something a little more impressive out of the bag. Perhaps the company could use the help of the muses themselves next time.
