The Outrun – Church Hill Theatre

Amy Liptrot’s 2015 memoir of a generation lost to trivia and over-consumption certainly struck a chord. A film of the book is released this year plus this co-production between Edinburgh International Festival and Royal Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh.

The Outrun is beautifully staged. Milla Clarke works some artistic magic, along with a collection of talented creatives from Lewis den Hertog on video (superb), Lizzie Powell on lighting, Michael Henry and Kev Murray on music and sound. The piece is cleanly directed by Vicky Featherstone.

Vicki Manderson’s chorus opening as waves is very atmospheric and intriguing. Set partially in Orkney, waves are relevant. Additionally, a wave can knock us off our feet and fighting a wave can prove fruitless. Metaphorically, the waves work for this piece.

The acting is spot on. Isis Hainsworth, Paul Brennan, Samuel Dillane, Alison Fitzjohn, Reuben Joseph and Ros Watt all work seamlessly together.

Indicating the passing of time by leaping and running around the stage with vigour and joy, repeating a set of phrases was sheer brilliance.

However, The Outrun is overly long, at one and a half hours, for this introspective story. A slew of young women left early. Maybe they were off to the pub!

I found the set and all the creative tech aspects very pleasing. Moreover, the empty hole and boredom of not drinking rang true. I recently lost a dear friend to the disease. He couldn’t quit because life lost all its colour when he was sober. It was a slow, painful suicide of a beautiful soul.

Given this context, I appreciated this show. It’s not easy to dramatise our inner worlds and Featherstone and Stef Smith, the script writer, did a sterling job on a difficult subject.

Would I recommend The Outrun to others? Yes, if addiction is a subject you wish to explore. Yes, if you want to poach creative theatre ideas. No, if you are seeking a relaxing escape or you want to feel inspired to discuss the complexities of addiction, as it was a bit of a race through time rather than a deep dive.

Having said that, there are great production standards in this piece, and I was intrigued, almost to the end.

Reviewer: Kathleen Mansfield

Reviewed: 15th August 2024

North West End UK Rating: