Seen at Edinburgh Festival Fringe on the 23^rd of August 2019

Review by Federica Balbi

 – Trans-power

Credits: Maurizio Martorana

Credits: Maurizio Martorana

Iron wings with knives instead of feathers, and a long straight light-pink tale. This is the creature who moves on scene, this is the creature who fights for existing. A shelter is slowly built out of plywood panels, and then the wooden box, many a time carried and displaced, is finally opened and its content revealed.

    This is the essence, the trans-human nature of the protagonist of Hearty. Chased, persecuted, she knows that ʻwe’ve been here before,ʼ in a place where living with the others’ respect was not possible, and she asks not to be there again, in the place that can turn out to be any place. She knows she is in danger, and despite her strength, she murmurs with great dignity to every person in the audience: ʻPlease don’t hurt me.ʼ

    With this powerful piece, the writer and performer Emma Frankland speaks for a community, a ʻHearty Sisterhoodʼ, and for the rights of trans individuals. She builds visual metaphors for us to witness and she elaborates with creativity the concept of bio-technologies, transcending not only gender but the whole human race.

    The performance has refrains that strengthen and sharpen the main themes and it evolves through a perfectly calibrated narrative strategy. The political message is from time to time whispered and screamed, but mostly recreated on stage in every element of this performance and its rock aesthetics.

    This show is the fifth chapter of the project None of Us is Yet a Robot, also available as a book. Visit the company website below for further information.

15^th – 24^th August, 9.10 pm

Running time: 1 hour

Summerhall – Demonstration Room (Venue 26) 1 Summerhall, Edinburgh EH9 1PL

Tickets and Info: https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/hearty

Company website: https://www.notyetarobot.co.uk/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/elbfrankland

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notyetarobot/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/noneofusisyetarobot/