An interesting concept, poorly executed.
Angelika May’s Unicorn in Captivity is a sore disappointment. The story follows the difficult relationship of M, an obsessive artist fueled by suffering and loss, and F, an art student struggling with her health, to its tragic end. While an intriguing premise, it is undermined by questionable acting, muddled plot points, and mediocre dialogue. With a recast and a polish of the script this has the potential to really be something.
The story May has crafted is unique and catching but in need of some refining. Unicorn in Captivity, under Mayra Stergiou’s direction, features interesting scenes and nicely mixes comedic moments into its very serious subject matter. The sequence in which M interviews F about her seizures is particularly moving, and the end interview where his exhibition is displayed is well-executed. There were however several scenes which were so over-the-top dramatic that they almost became laughable. The transitions between scenes were awkward and disjointed, with unnecessary movement sequences. The opening scene was especially odd with the actors carrying out lighted fabric balls like school children playing at being meteors. The end also features a speech on women suffering in the healthcare system that departs from the plot.
M has a very clear character with depth and layers accessible to the audience. F’s character is shallow; her storyline within the show is fascinating but the audience is given no insight into her backstory or her beyond the immediate events. Perhaps it is intentional so as to demonstrate how easily the sick are boiled down to their disease, but it is frustrating as an audience member to be given so little. More depth can be teased out of the characters and the journey May has created.
The most troubling aspect of Unicorn in Captivity was the acting. May, in addition to having conceptualized and written this piece, performed in the role of F. The show would have benefited greatly had she remained in the writers’ room. Though improving slightly in her final scenes, May’s performance was dull and forced, with little to no emotional engagement with the audience or her scene partner Charlie Collinson. He and May had little chemistry. Collinson starred as M and gave a creditable though unmemorable performance. He is uncomfortable to watch but in a way that is well-suited to the character he is embodying. Nick Morrison Baker, Patrick McHugh, and Jack Tivey also had short appearances in this production, each of them performing better than the show’s leads.
Eliza Podesta’s set initially came across as cluttered but proved perfectly suited for the story; the photographs littering the room and the messy sheets made sense for the scattered artist’s home and the space adapted easily to the various settings. Anya Rose’s photography, featuring in the exhibition scene, was a highlight. Its moody, modern appearance was grabbing and would make an interesting exhibition of its own. The work of Lighting Designer Inigo Townsend was very intelligent. His use of colored and flashing lights brilliantly combined with Jack Hoban’s audio selections to convey F’s epileptic journey. Hoban’s audio was too loud at times, especially during the pre-recorded voice overs, and crackled through the speakers, muddling some of the words.
I really wanted to love Unicorn in Captivity. The premise is fascinating and the ideas are really unique but the production that has resulted is far from what I had hoped.
Unicorn in Captivity promises a lot more than it delivers.