The stage space is surrounded by a small wall of tiny cardboard boxes, each with a painted letter in a strange alphabet. The likeable and friendly presence of performer Katherina Radeva gently greets the audience as we arrive, referring to some as ‘comrade’, and then leads us through a lesson in pronouncing these unusual letters, which I later come to realise are Bulgarian.
What follows is a solo show based on reminiscences of the demise of communism, as experienced by Katherina as a 7-year-old living in Sofia. There is a knowing naivety to the style and tone, which makes sense given they are the recollections of events experienced by a young girl, and possibly also reflects the relationship between the state and people at that time. It also reminded me of that faux-naïve characteristic of live art utilised to approach depth and complexity obliquely via stealth. It also makes the show a few edits away from being a family/children’s show (it is listed as suitable for ages 14+).
The delivery changes register between conversational storytelling and sections of more stylised and poetic text, gestures and actions. The cardboard boxes come to stand for characters; a very charming dog with a cute rope tail, and a lesbian couple, Stacey and Frida, whose relationship is profoundly affected by the political system. Theirs is a parallel story running throughout the show, and was the strongest element for me. One cannot tolerate the system and is prepared to the take the significant risk to escape to freedom, whilst the other is more cautious and conservative and stays behind.
Another element that runs through the piece is a TV gameshow the couple are watching called ‘What’s boxed up?’ featuring multiple-choice questions about politically correct actions with all the prizes being communist party membership. Initially, the host clearly indicates which of the answers is the correct one, but not in later rounds. I didn’t quite see how this example summarised life under communism, or how it related to the love story. Towards the end, we see hear news of the fall of the Berlin Wall, and a surprise appearance of David Hasselhoff giving a concert for Berliners.
The show left me hungry for more specific geographical and historical details, but I can certainly imagine that some others may better appreciate this more impressionistic/poetic style, and arousing my curiosity is certainly a positive outcome.
Featured image (top) by Alex Brenner