Reformers
Reviewed by: Quincy Macdonald
Rating: ★★★ 3/5
It’s an early show by Fringe standards, reminiscent of anyone trying to get in a workout before work starts. As you head into the basement of Greenside, you can imagine it would be hard for anyone on the busy street to hear your screams and/or laughter through the thick walls and loud AC. I was worried about the screams more than the laughter as I entered the space, as I was greeted by two machines that resemble ancient torture devices, like the rack you’ll find in the basement of an Austrian castle. Turns out these are the titular “Reformers”, a Pilates apparatus for stretching, lifting and swearing.
I know nothing about Pilates, or rather, knew nothing. Thanks to the snappy writing from Eddie Thornton and the absolutely dripping delivery from Anna Glendenning, I have gathered some knowledge. It seems that the primary purpose of Pilates is to punish your body in an attempt to make up for perceived mental or physical failings. This is helped by an all-knowing instructor selectively withholding or applying praise to accentuate your insecurities. The exercise may be harsh, but it’s this fire that leads to the forging of an unlikely friendship between our two protagonists. Although they were quick to judge each other, by the end of the 50 minutes they realised that they had more in common than they thought.
At its heart, the play draws on the realistic demons these characters have faced, briefly touching on topics like eating disorders, self-improvement culture and the dangers of 5G towers (or, depending on perspective, online misinformation). Cutting through these serious topics are solid jokes that enhance the absurdity of the authentic, if well-trodden, story.
Two moments of this show will stay with me for a long time.
“Where are your grippy socks?” A line said as a threat more than a question. Out of context, this is indeterminably silly; however, within the show, it is both funny and truly quite sad.
A muffin top chase. Within the framing of the Pilates in the show, the delivery of the dialogue while doing some mild exercises on these torture devices is impressive, but in this unexpected turn, you see the real potential Eddie Thornton has for physical comedy.
This is Eddie’s first piece, and I walked away thinking I can’t wait to see what she produces in the future. The dialogue was cutting and it was well-produced, but there was potential there to make something outstanding and truly strange.
★★★
