Kim Noble’s provocative, powerful multi-media production gives a deep dive into his psyche. Is it performance Art? Is it theatre? As a one hour production, it has been put together very well.
Maggots feasting on a dead fox, a graphic taxidermy of a dead squirrel. There are parts to this play that are so disgusting that it would make an “amber turd” look like a chocolate sundae in comparison. This play is not for the faint-hearted.
The moments with his dying father are so poignant but the moments with his mother are absurd at an oedipal level and difficult to watch.
Of the hilarious moments in the play, what stands out to me most his his conversations with a stuffed grey squirrel. Most notably when the squirrel calls him out as being a narcissist.
Despite the gruesomeness of parts of the play, Noble touches on some key points. Giving a voice to the grey squirrel makes you think of the unfairness to how they are being euthanised to preserve the red squirrels. It was humans that messed up the eco system in the victorian era and brought these squirrel over from America.
One of the most comedic and touching sequences in the play was Noble working as a cleaner for an insurance company. His covert operation of filming these people as he is ignored by them and given excuses of “I am heading to the gym” when he asks one guy if he wants to go for a drink.
For more information on the production and how to book tickets visit https://sohotheatre.com/shows/kim-noble-lullaby-for-scavengers/
