Fugue

Based on the first day of previews, I think there's promise for Lee Thuna's script and the strong lead performance of Deirdre O'Connell, who plays an amnesiac trapped in a fugue state (i.e., on the run from a memory she cannot deal with). Unfortunately, there's little chance of cutting the show down to a more manageable one-act, and even less of a chance of replacing her inquisitive doctor, currently played by an unflinchingly bland Rick Stear. The play's direction by Judith Ivey is modest: the way in which the memories invade our heroine's present is interesting, but it grows a bit old, which is yet another reason to pare down. Too much of the show is currently exposition, and too much time is spent developing red herrings. To find that the stereotypical mother, annoyingly awkward love interest, and exuberantly false "friend," are all superfluous to the story makes the otherwise effective climax rather manipulative: there's no reason O'Connell can't confront her memories earlier in the show. Despite all the middling, muddling performances (especially the loose accents), there's a star and a story gripping enough to interest me.

Also blogged by: [David]