Saturday 23 October 2021

THEATRE REVIEW: Isla - Theatr Clwyd, Mold


Is our ever-increasing reliance on ‘digital servants’ a good or bad thing? That’s the question at the heart of Tim Price’s dark comedy, Isla.

Gifted with an Alexa-style device named Isla by his well-meaning daughter, cantankerous pensioner Roger gets to grips with his new gadget during lockdown. At first, he is reluctant but after striking up a bond with his new assistant, he soon discovers the darker side of modern technology and is taken on an unwilling journey of self-discovery.

Price’s writing is fresh and vibrant. Personally, I’m not ready to see performances that have anything to do with Covid-19 or lockdown or the last miserable 18 months, but I have to say Price tackles the topic from an interesting, engaging new angle. I couldn’t help but sympathise with Erin as she desperately tried to keep up with her work demands and keep her father safe from the virus. As she kept a lid on her frustration at her father’s blasé approach to social distancing and isolation, I thought about the same conversations I had had with elderly relatives last year. Isla doesn’t romanticise lockdown. Neither does it overly-dramatise it. Instead, it captures the subtle nuances of the lockdown experience perfectly (there’s even a cameo from Joe Wicks and those famous home exercise classes). His script crackles with razor-sharp wit, pathos and painful veracity.

Mark Lambert is the height of professionalism as Roger. He carries the whole show effortlessly, infusing a wonderfully recognisable humour and grumpiness as the frustrated widower. We laugh as he initially rejects his gift, shrugging off any suggestions he may need support. We feel a warmth towards him as he starts to marvel at Isla’s helpfulness in a lovely, almost child-like way. And then our hearts break for him, as Isla becomes his confidante and he reveals more and more about his worries and concerns – from growing older to being ignored by society. His loneliness and grief for his wife Joy is shown sensitively through some lovely interactions with Isla. Roger is all of our parents and grandparents. He is so recognisable he is instantly likeable, despite his faults.

Lisa Zahra plays his fraught daughter Erin beautifully. We empathise with Erin as she juggles the pressures of working through lockdown and providing care for her elderly father from a distance, and we are disappointed in her when she appears to put work before her father. (Another lovely moment of poignancy which has hilarious consequences as Roger tries to use Isla to send a text message.)

But then things begin to follow a more unexpected path. Without giving too much away, Isla twists into a more politically charged tale which explores contemporary themes such as sexism and domestic abuse. There’s even a reference to a digital #MeToo movement (‘#R2-MeToo’). Catrin Aaron, who also provides the voice for Isla, steals the scene as the condescending PC Jones (‘OK?’) sent to educate Roger on gender equality and misogynist hate speech. PC Jones’ scene is a shining example of how Price delivers a sucker punch message through delightful comedy. Yes, we laugh at Roger’s poor attempts to lighten the mood and absolve his guilt as he questions what PC Jones says in her own home, but then we are hit with a revelation that she actually says affirmations to protect her own mental health after dealing with ignorant people all day. We end up questioning Roger’s behaviour alongside him – is it as harmless as it first seems?

Isla is a wonderfully nuanced piece about relationships and loneliness, which leaves us questioning not only how we treat those around us, but how we treat our appliances! Does a device that mimics a human identity deserve to be abused any more than a real human does?  And what might the future repercussions be for those who commit such a crime?

I’ll certainly be thinking twice about how I speak to the photocopier at work tomorrow, anyway!

Reviewer - Gavin Hayes
on - 21.10.21


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