My attention was grabbed and shaken vigorously by the strobe lighting and thunderous dramatic immersion of the opening scene. This is Not a Love Story made for compelling watching throughout, with an almost playful, light quality to the performers’ presence on stage and an ease and intimacy in how they delivered their lines, at times addressing the audience or one another.
Kristiina Viiala and Johan Thelander play a number of different characters each, narrating scene changes and character changes as they go about them - ‘I start here, I end here’ - in a matter of fact way that had the effect of drawing me further into the world they were creating. The stark theatrical setting and inclusive portrayal of the ups and downs of human relationships provided an intimacy and humour that reminded me of the work of Miranda July and David Shrigley. It felt like a love story about the human experience. Emma for DRAFF This is Not a Love Story by Gunilla Heilborn ran at Project Arts Centre as part of Dublin Theatre Festival.
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