X by Alistair McDowall
The Barn Theatre is proud to present a new production of X by Alistair McDowall, opening on 12th June.
X premiered at the Royal Court in 2016, where Matthew Greenbank saw it and was blown away. Now, he is directing this beautiful and challenging play at the Barn Theatre. Starting from a simple sci-fi premise, the piece develops into a fascinating and moving study of human beings under extreme conditions, where time loses its meaning, individual personality begins to melt, and language can slip away.
The setting is a far distant future, in which the Earth is ruined: there are no more trees or birds, South America is “gone”. A group of researchers from the third planet is stranded in a facility on Pluto. They have endured this situation for such a length of time, waiting for a signal from home that never comes, that they have lost the ability to measure temporal duration: it has simply been “a long time”. As the action unfolds, the characters face terrible choices in the face of existential anguish – what if no-one really is coming to save them?
Within this context, certain themes bubble to the surface. Ray (played by Paull Russell)) grapples with issues of leadership. Through the character of Cole (Dylan Huber) we are brought to question the value of science. Clark (Ben Merry) carries terrible memories of the how the Earth's ecosystem has been degraded. Mattie {Calypso Powell) brings a special tenderness to questions of community and care. At the centre of it all is Gilda (Jessica Drucker), the closest the play has to a central character, whose interactions with the other team members hold the piece together. In one extraordinary segment, Clark and Gilda together undertake a journey through grief that is too deep for words.
X draws on familiar aspects of sci-fi and horror: the set presents a futuristic interior that at first glance seems familiar from Dr Who or the Alien movies, but is also loaded with the potential for ambiguity and mystery: what has happened to reality outside that porthole, or up the ladder in that bulkhead?
While indebted to popular culture, X is also rooted in the tradition of 20th-century avant-garde theatre, especially the plays of Samuel Beckett. Waiting for Godot, with its existential themes of companionship and eternal, unresolved waiting, is a particularly strong influence.
Matthew is keen to give audiences at the Barn access to stretching material, such as X, that requires a tolerance for ambiguity and an openness to discussion. As he explained, each member of the cast has their own take on the meaning of the play and, indeed, the way it hangs together. Viewers should come away moved emotionally and intellectually, in all likelihood with more questions than answers.
For example, the title itself: what does “X” stand for? Is it a variable in a mathematical calculation? Is it a mark of erasure – “crossing out”? Does it denote a hidden location? Is it a kiss? Does it refer to Christ as in “Xmas”? All of these resonances and more are pertinent, as the play bears witness to some of the deepest wounds inflicted on the human condition.
X runs at the Barn Theatre from Friday 12th to Saturday 20th June, evenings 8pm, matinee on 20th June, 2.30pm. Tickets cost £16 from Barn Theatre box office on 01707 324300 or online at www.barntheatre.co.uk. Note: the play contains strong language and themes of psychological distress they may be upsetting to some people.
