Love Beyond is a moving and deeply poetic piece of theatre. Part of MANIPULATE Festival 2023, and presented by Raw Material and Vanishing Point, the two performances at the Traverse Theatre on Friday 10th February and Saturday 11th February mark its UK Premiere. And what a successful premiere it was. With a sold-out performance and bustling bar filled with excitement both before and after the show, the awe felt by the audience was palpable.
Written by Glasgow-based Singaporean theatre maker Ramesh Meyyappan and directed by Matthew Lenton, the story follows Harry (played by Meyyappan himself), an elderly man with dementia and sign language user, as he moves into a new home, and is subsequently flooded with memories of past times spent with his wife. His first interaction with his carer, May, played by Elicia Daly with heart-melting compassion, is one that holds the audience’s attention from the start. As the two characters struggle to understand each other as May’s use of BSL is initially limited, the relationship that develops between the two throughout the play as May’s BSL improves is a real treat for the heart – heart-wrenching, yes, as Harry begins to forget his own language, but strong in stirring up empathy for these two characters.
The set, designed by Becky Minto, creates a beautiful and powerful backdrop for this story. Magnifying both the communication difficulties between our two main protagonists at the start of the show, as well as acting as a reflection of Harry’s condition and fragmented memories, the three imposing Perspex panels that divide the stage and move in swift harmony to serve the story – as well as be an integral part of it – are brilliantly used. As the audience is fully reflected in them also, they considerably expand the space of the narrative: creating a dialogue between Harry and his past, as the flickering memories of his wife and younger self (portrayed by Amy Kennedy and Rinko Barbaga) appear intermittently as ghosts behind the panels in an ingenious use of lighting (designed by Simon Wilkinson and operated by Kate Hall), they also open up and invite the viewers to be a part of this world in questioning our own relation to language and communication, be it verbal or nonverbal, and in connecting with Harry’s experience. As the immersion in his memories is so vividly conveyed, we similarly find ourselves brutally brought back to reality as the illusion collapses and we are back to being face-to-face with our own reflection.
Meyyappan’s performance is mesmerizing and profoundly moving – the world of emotions that is held in his eyes is one that I have rarely seen, and makes it impossible not to connect and empathise with the character. Add to this a sound design (headed by Gabriel Kemp with an evocative soundtrack composed by David Paul Jones) as equally imposing as the set and acting, and you find yourself in a show that grips you from start to finish. I was truly grateful for there being no interval.
I have not spoken enough about the mix of English, BSL, and visual vernacular, with its aim of creating a play that can be equally enjoyed and experienced by d/Deaf audiences and hearing audiences alike, but it is without a doubt something that needs to be experienced first-hand – and that I only hope will become more and more of an occurrence within theatre.
Love Beyond is next travelling to the Tron Theatre in Glasgow, on 17th and 18th February, and I urge you to get yourself out of any plans you may already have on those nights to go and see this. Find tickets here: https://www.tron.co.uk/shows/love-beyond-act-of-remembrance/
Follow these links to find out more about Vanishing Point and Raw Material: https://vanishing-point.org/ https://www.rawmaterialarts.com/ and this link to find out more about Ramesh Meyyappan’s work: https://www.rameshmeyyappan.org/
Reviewer: Louise Balaguer
Reviewed: 11th February 2023
North West End UK Rating: ★★★★★