Edinburgh Guide.com - August 11, 2004
Anger Box. (Page 128).
Drams 
.
Venue Sweet in the Royal Mile (Venue 39).
Address Radisson SAS Hotel, 80 High Street.
Reviewer Marisa de Andrade.
Nine, naughty monologues are wrapped up in TheatreZone's
Anger Box, waiting
to explode. But they're hardly the gifts you are expecting, although they
appear to
be from their deceptive packaging. Ordinary people (for the most part)
talking
about regular situations - delivering pizzas, dinner orders and Christmas.
But then
something really ticks them off. 'Fundamentalist crap', lousy tips or
terrorist
attacks, and they find themselves wondering if God's got anything to do
with goodness
in the world. Is He the rock of salvation, or just a jester in search of
another
person to test his next joke on?
Anger Box does to religion what XXX does to sex. Presents a controversial
concept in a twisted and offensive, yet surprisingly effective way. Don't get
me wrong. The comparison is purely on a thematic level. Anger Box could
not be more innocently performed. Actors of all ages, conventionally clad for
the most part, clutching bibles and crosses as they barely move across a miniature,
black-box set. But the suggestive power of the well written monologues is shocking
enough to stir up the sacrilegious. Blasphemy, the religious folk would call it.
Although the writer Jeff Goode reminds the audience 'that these are things
someone else has thought of. Not you.' Still, those of rock solid faith would
be wasting their time at this play. It's for those who dare to challenge the Almighty.
Some of the finer moments include 'The (drunken) Goddess of Victory's' redundancy
as humans opt for participating rather than winning in life. A cynical Santa and
pushy waitress taking orders at the restaurant (roadhouse?) on the highway to
heaven or hell.
Anger Box showcases some of the finest actors I've seen at the festival.
And it sure gets the baleful bit of the imagination going.
© Marisa de Andrade 11 August 2004 - Published on
EdinburghGuide.com
Runs to August 8-15 at 17.50.
Company TheatreZone.
Rating
Guide
None = Unmissable
= Unwatchable
Page number refers to the Fringe programme
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