Outside Voice is the finest of contemporary theatre.
Outside Voice challenges our understanding of disinformation. Matt Morrison’s original work sees soon-to-be government health committee chair Helen struggle to mesh her world of hardline academia with her husband’s boundary pushing podcast. Questioning truth and convention, this captivating play shows the damage wrought by misinformation and academic competition.
The chemistry amongst the cast was phenomenal. Viss Elliot Safavi is brilliant. As Helen, she was able to create a complex character and convey the story without seeming to perform it; it was like watching life through a window. Her costar, Phil Cheadle, equally brilliant but in the opposite fashion. Playing Helen’s husband, the disgraced scholar turned podcaster, Guy he was overly performative, engaging with the audience like a presenter at a convention. Safavi and Cheadle’s differing styles were perfectly suited to their characters and they played wonderfully off each other in the progression of their relationship. Dan Starkey’s fiery performance as Guy and Helen’s incendiary former colleague, Mike was striking. Elle O’Donnell’s elegantly understated portrayal of cancer-stricken Eve was refreshing. Expressive and engaging, there was a lightness about her that lacked elsewhere in the show.
Set designer Nicky Bunch is a genius. The seemingly simple wall of boxes created every prop and set change required. It was flawlessly designed and used with such a striking intelligence that it is perhaps the most memorable piece of the show. Louise Anderson’s lighting design was very effective; combined with Ed Lewis’s sound design, scene changes and shifts from private moments to podcasting came naturally and clearly.
Outside Voice is really a fascinating work of theatre. It challenges what we know and examined the malleability of truth professionally and personally. The story is complex but not in a sensational fashion; it’s a study of relationships amidst ideological conflict. It progresses logically with no outrageous or unnecessary plot twists. The script itself is lovely, it flows organically and conversationally. The ending is the perfect summation of human imperfection. Matt Morrison is clearly a gifted writer.
How do you define truth? Of course the word can be defined but our perceptions and choices are constantly tainting what we, individually, understand as the truth. Could you love someone whose understanding of truth and reality opposes yours? That is the central question of Matt Morrison’s Outside Voice.
Tackling the complexities of the age of fake news and misinformation, Outside Voice offers a fresh perspective on love and truth. Poignant, compelling, and unquestionably relevant, Outside Voice is the finest of contemporary theatre.