Show: 15
Category: Drama / Physical Theater / Solo Show / Storytelling
By: Mahmoud Hakima
Directed by: Nicole Wood
Location: Theatre in the Round
Summary: A solo storytelling show about child abuse, and a way out.
Highlights: Mahmoud first performed this show at the 2009 Fringe but I've never seen it, and am mostly familiar with Mahmoud as a member of Blackout. But I now know him as an expert storyteller too. In what I assume is an autobiographical tale, he relays the story of a young boy and the abuse that he and his siblings endured at the hands of his step-father. He only refers to "the boy" and "the man," which perhaps allows for some distance to the story. This family experienced some brutal child abuse that's chillingly and viscerally recounted, in a way that makes it difficult to watch at times. But it's beautifully told and so worth seeing. The show is constructed as a series of scenes that move around a bit in time, and also talk about the boy's relationship with a protective slightly older girl in elementary school, who it turns out may have some issues of her own (not too surprising considering some of the disturbing child/parent play she employs). This is perhaps the most dynamic storytelling show I've seen; with direction by Nicole Miller, Mahmoud uses the entire in-the-round space, moving four chairs around in different configurations to represent characters or locations, so that when we return to them we instantly know where they are. He sometimes acts out the scenes in addition to narrating them, bringing them to fuller life. The blackout moments between scenes provide a needed breather from these sometimes brutal stories, and are accompanied by a well-chosen soundtrack of songs. This is a tragic story that's beautifully and effectively told.