In a beautifully bittersweet one-man show, Dylan tells us all about the radical ups and downs of his life story, in the hopes of offering a bit of joy to others.
Dylan is autistic. He is very open about this from the play’s onset. He tells us, the audience, directly, in no uncertain terms. It is important for us to know, not because we are supposed to perceive Dylan through this lens, but because it gives us, the audience, the opportunity to observe the assumptions that immediately popped into our minds once we were presented with this term. The play’s clever structure and stylistically astute use of voiceover slowly encourages the audience to consider their own prejudices. Without asking directly, Tides questions our preconceived notions of those on the spectrum. While we may consider ourselves to be open minded, liberal, woke, whatever term you prefer, much of our actions and words do more harm than good. Tides is not here to educate – it is not writer/performer Joe Dennis’ job to do so. Rather, Tides is here to tell a story, and when we truly listen to the experiences of others, it is impossible not to learn in some respect.
We begin at Dylan’s birth. We discover the world with Dylan, experience the isolation of operating on a different wavelength to what is generally considered the norm. We follow along as Dylan learns more about the ways in which he is perceived as different, how when he reveals his autism diagnosis, people treat him differently. The world was built by and for the neurotypical population; Dylan’s experience makes that ultimately evident. Dylan grows from childhood to adolescence, to adulthood, experiencing all of the tumult that comes with these painstaking years, in addition to obstacles that not all of us have to face. We travel through time, revisiting high school, college, university, first jobs, covid, and the like.
There is an enormous amount to take away from this production. A unifying experience, Tides shows us how alike we all are, how we must treat each other consistently with kindness as we have no knowledge of what our peers are facing internally. Joe Dennis’ excellent writing and impressive performance are a delight to experience. His text is funny and heartbreaking, his performance extraordinarily engaging. Will Sutherland’s direction is wise, creating a dynamic playing space, particularly important in one-person shows.
Tides is a show that would be of great benefit for us all to watch, at least once.