Part Star Trek spoof, part verbatim theatre—using extracts from interviews with real people affected in some way by mental illness—and quite unsure as to what it’s supposed to be doing, An Evening With Psychosis is a confused, ill-conceived mess of a production.
Constantly skipping back and forth between offensively bad sci-fi—in which the three-strong cast simply shout at each other while waving their arms about and sliding about only wheelie chairs—and actually quite poignant statements from those touched and troubled by quite serious psychological problems, the crassness of this production is almost unbelievable. Indeed, so tediously awful is the main dramatic element that one feels a genuine sense of disgust when it is juxtaposed with readings of genuine human tragedy.
The multimedia element of this production feels tacked on and adds nothing to the performance, the stage direction is practically non-existent and the hammy acting at once alienates an audience, removing any hint of emotional involvement in the play.
Neither writer nor performers come out of this looking good. An Evening With Psychosis is a truly risible show.
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