By Rosie Niven
Directing a work you've written yourself can be a dangerous game. Many artists have fallen into the trap of Directing their own works, but not being able to separate themselves enough from the text to critique it, sometimes resulting in a production that really needed an unbiased pair of eyes.
This is not the case with WRATH. As part of Jack Rabbit's KXT takeover, Writer/Director Liam Maguire brings us a firecracker satire about the cutthroat corporate world and the things we do to climb the unending success ladder.
Set in a middle management office, WRATH introduces us to a slew of office stereotypes: the nervous new guy, the guy who overcompensates with jokes, the woman who loves to remind you that she's UPPER middle management, the hawklike boss who won't give you a break, and the sleazy older guy who's overstepped a boundary at least twelve times. Each character we're introduced to helps create a corporate space that many of us are all too familiar with, as we watch dynamic caricatures bouncing around the boardroom and dissecting everything from how we generate less in put but more output, to accusing each other of not forwarding that chain email to 5 friends within 24 hours.
The traverse stage is simple yet effective - basic red carpet covers the floor which is torn up piece by piece throughout the show, and the space is adorned with classic office pieces. The actors successfully fill the space around this set, constantly switching sides and shifting their bodies so that no audience member felt left out of the scene. John Collopy's lighting design works smoothly with Sam Maguire's sound design to create hilarious vignettes that break up the increasingly manic plot and had the audience rolling in their seats.
The language in Maguire's script is fast-paced and incredibly sharp, delivering puns, jokes and plot twists at a mile a minute. A script like this requires a particularly talented cast that have a handle on characterisation and comedic timing, and the cast of this production did not disappoint. This well formed ensemble takes us on what Maguire describes as a 'satirical rollercoaster', with twists and turns around every corner (even the fire escape). Amy Hack and Elle Mickel shone comedically, hitting every note and creating that were delectably despicable.
WRATH is a 65 minute show that keeps the hits coming from start to finish. Maguire and the cast have created an incredibly enjoyable show that is hard to fault. This is a show you should go to if you just want to have a really, really good time. Just make sure you leave your serious theatre hat at the door.
All opinions and thoughts expressed within reviews on Theatre Travels are those of the writer and not of the company at large.