An Adventure, Bush Theatre [Jamal Simon @CJSimon123]
An Adventure, currently starting a 5-week run at the Bush Theatre, is all at once a story of love, growth, choice, and life in a post-colonial world.
Vinay Patel opens his play with this comical and intimate back and forth between protagonists Jyoti (Anjana Vasan) and Rasik (Shubham Saraf) setting up a near-on epic story which spans 64 years as we follow their lives from 1954 through to 2018. An Adventure is named as such because it takes you on a journey which spans three hours, in three acts, across three continents in such a well done manner. The matching of Patel’s well-paced script and Madani Younis’ driven direction means that what might have felt like a dreary slog, leaving the audience uncomfortably drowsy in their seats, was actually incredibly gripping and at some points had the audience reeling back and gasping in shock – it was the first time I’d ever been in such an audibly responsive audience.
Despite the setting of this Adventure, Patel didn’t let a period piece limit his method of expression. Our characters speak with their own voice, use current colloquial terms and reference modern movies long before they were conceived. This builds upon the understanding that the past still bleeds into the present and highlights the tact Patel has for thematic exploration.
The space provided by The Bush Theatre’s black box which had the audience on two sides of the action created this comfortable close feel which persisted throughout. This eased the audience into becoming immersed in the worlds of these characters. We sit mesmerised as the stage is transformed from Indian home, to Kenyan farm, to London flat, to Danson Park in a series of well crafted, colourful, and hypnotic movement sequences. At one point my eyes were drawn to these black silhouettes contrasted on bright yellow walls dancing fantastically back and forth.
Younis and his refreshingly diverse cast command the stage with such ease in a space where it’s easy to have one side of the audience miss a syllable or an emotion. It’s safe to say our heroine Jyoti and the actress whom embodied her, Anjana Vasan, steals the show with such an empowering and empowered performance bringing to life the adventure of a woman attempting to defy the restrictions of her society and is left to face her successes and her failures.
Where the show falters began with the connection between actors. Despite some superb individual performances there were moments where it seemed that I wasn’t watching two people in the same room but rather two sperate scenes where the words followed some understandable audience by happenstance without maintaining a mutual emotional response. So came about mere moments where I was drawn out of the moment of this world.
Despite some brilliant moments of dialogue where Patel confronts the truths of colonialism and the establishment as the show came to close I had one question. Patel asks ‘When you look back at the story of your time together, can you bear to ask yourself: was it worth it?’ And as the lights went down I asked myself the same thing. Was it wort it? After three hours, I couldn’t say no but I couldn’t jump to say yes either. An Adventure felt more like a long enjoyable walk through a museum, you learn a lot, you see some fantastic things, but as you leave you know it’s unlikely you’ll revisit it for a few years.
It’s probably true that I’d have appreciated the piece more if I had a larger knowledge of Empire. Still, the story of a migrants making a better life for their children, a country in conflict, and a new generation learning from their parents past is something that deserves the spot it has on the stage.
Three and a half stars ***
Jamal Simon // I'm Jamal, currently a second year sixth former and aspiring playwright who dabbles in acting and singing. I've performed in a variety of venues from the Southwark Playhouse and the Young Vic, to Soutwark and St Pauls Cathedral. Proud to be able to watch and review so many politically fused and creatively brilliant shows. // Twitter: @CJSimon123, Instagram: @CJSimon123