Saturday, October 1, 2016

Sarah Gordon, 'A Sinkhole in Guatemala': Fair Trade

A vital environmental message so covert, you might miss it.


The New Theatre, Tiger Dublin Fringe Festival
Sep 21-24

A quick review of A Sinkhole in Guatemala by Sarah Gordon coming up after the jump ...


It takes tremendous trust for an audience to see a production that’s unrehearsed. Sarah Gordon’s new play depends on a guest actor each night (Steve Blount on this occasion, uncertainly clued in or clueless) to tell the story of a sinkhole that appears in a Guatemalan woman’s bedroom.

The problem is beyond local emergency services; the sinkhole starts widening to engulf South America! Meanwhile, Blount is involved in curious gags involving eating a banana, going on an errand to by Coke, and making tea. As theatrical treatise against unfair trade and environmental degradation go, this one’s pretty stealthy.

Gordon’s tactic is to show a sad picture of an Earth depopulated, while placing emphasis on the importance of the audience to witness it. Whether you take the pro-environmental message or not when you leave is down is anyone’s guess. This vital message is so covert, you’d nearly miss it.

What did everybody else think?


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