"Love's Time's Beggar" - May 2009

Those who follow our posts closely, well the ones written by me at any rate, may have noticed that apostrophes can be an issue. But despite a title that sets my head spinning, we popped along to "Love's Time's Beggar" from Ankur Productions' Community Ensemble at the Tron. As always, please remember that we don't make allowances for this being a Community based piece - we treat all productions in the same manner.

The proposition is simple but immediately intriguing - five characters who have recently died are given the opportunity by their guides to the afterlife to record one memory from their lifetime to take with them to eternity - all other memories will be erased. Each then shares a memory which is portrayed with the help of the others in the 'waiting room'. It's a nice framing device that shares the burden of the narrative and allows each segment to set its own tone and feel, without overwhelming the whole.

It takes a while to warm up and in the early stages the performances feel rather 'forced', almost uncomfortable. The problem isn't Anna's tale of domestic abuse (the first we see), more the dynamic in the 'waiting room' scenes. Fortunately, as the show goes on the performers seem to relax into their roles and by the time we reach the more playful elements of Max's retreat into a virtual world, it has developed into a pretty polished production. But while each of the tales was sufficiently well crafted to keep my interest, and there were a couple of very nice moments, it never quite made the impact the concept has the potential to.

This was certainly a perfectly pleasant way to spend an evening, but I suspect those involved may have been aiming just a little bit higher.

"Love's Time's Beggar" has completed its run at the Tron.
Image by Andrew Wilson used with permission.