A Breathtaking Sprint Through Modern Life’s Treadmill
Produced by Pony Cam Collective and Parrot Ox, Burnout Paradise is a tour de force of endurance theatre that captivates and exhausts its audience as much as its performers.
The cast – Claire Bird, Hugo Williams, William Stron, and Dominic Weintraub – each mount a treadmill labeled with a different aspect of modern life: Survival, Admin, Performance, and Leisure. For forty minutes, they rotate through these stations, spending ten minutes at each. Laura Aldous serves as the Berocca-providing mediator and host overseeing the grueling performance.
The show begins with a bet: if the four performers do not collectively surpass the previous distance record of 20.70km on the treadmills, Laura will refund everyone’s tickets. This stake-raising gambit adds palpable tension to an already electrifying atmosphere. On the day I attended – the tenth show – the team triumphantly covered 21.16km (more than twice the height of Mount Everest), having failed to meet the target eight times prior.
What sets Burnout Paradise apart is its seamless integration of audience participation. Spectators are drawn into the immersive experience, becoming part of a living metaphor for our daily lives under capitalism. The performance brilliantly emulates the exhausting pressure to “work hard, play hard” and the societal expectation to excel in every aspect of life, often at the cost of mental well-being and inner peace.
Each treadmill station presents unique challenges. At “Survival,” performers must cook a three-course meal for volunteer diners. “Admin” requires writing a £20,000 grant application to Creative Scotland. “Performance” showcases talents ranging from tap dancing to Shakespearean recitals. “Leisure” involves multitasking through various self-care and relaxation activities, from painting nails to solving a Rubik’s cube.
Pony Cam Collective’s critique of modern life is as incisive as it is physical. Burnout Paradise unravels the realization that the capitalist system we reluctantly participate in is fundamentally at odds with human well-being. It’s a delirious celebration of our collective struggle to establish boundaries in lives where we’re expected to juggle countless responsibilities while making it all look effortless.
However, amidst this critique, the show offers a glimmer of hope. The interactions between performers and audience members foster a sense of community, emphasizing the importance of mutual support and burden-sharing. This aspect serves as a poignant reminder of the communal values that have been eroded by capitalism’s individualistic ethos.
Through its innovative set design, physical theatre, and abundant audience interaction, Burnout Paradise delivers a refreshing and topical commentary on our toxic relationship with productivity. It speaks not only to creatives but to anyone grappling with the demands of modern life, from teachers to doctors, to librarians to waitresses.
In Burnout Paradise, Pony Cam Collective has created a powerful, thought-provoking piece that is as hilariously entertaining as it is exhausting. It’s a must-see performance that will leave you breathless, both literally and figuratively.