Melodramatic Monochromatic Madness is the name of the game for Pulse 53’s daring adaptation of Stanislaw Ignacy Witkiewicz’s play Against Nothingness or 3cm Above an Empty Head. Featuring a cast of mimes who – circulating in and out of the stage in an endless loop – seem to have been wound up and let loose like clockwork toys.
The sheer physicality of their performances burns intensely from the first second, with each member of the ensemble owning their space in the play with real commitment; attributing each character with their own unique quirks and features.
Ragtime piano music narrates a lively dumbshow in the first section, where the ensemble of quirky mimes get to show off their chops. The effect is instantly impressive, giving the feel of an old silent film – only reinforced by the chalky black & white make up and the setting of the dumbshow in the cinema. The feel of this opening section is loaded with nostalgia; one thinks warmly of Chaplin, Circus Clowns and Tim Burton when looking upon this spectacle of mimes.
However, this is not a disposition that Pulse 53 is happy to keep you in for long. The comedic sketches of the ensemble are punctuated by the struggles of main character Stasiu (Tom Fletcher) – a writer, and creator of this odd world – to please his towering nine-foot tall father. As his desperation increases, so does the psychedelic nature of the play, culminating in a drug-fuelled cacophony of noise and movement. At times, this becomes nonsensical – but never boring. In any case, nonsense and philosophy are doled out in equal measure, with Fletcher reminding the audience that what is ‘even stranger is the assumption that the world might have existed without me’.
Directors Teresa & Andrzej Welmińscy have done a stunning job of crafting what could have been a delirious mess of overzealous mimes into an organised chaos, which, whilst painting a picture of terrifying madness, rarely loses a sense of orchestration. What this means is that the descent of this show into the macabre from its high seat of ragtime fun is subtle enough to draw out a disturbed feeling from the audience whilst keeping grasp of its dark humour.
There are a lot of things seemingly stupid and silly about this show, it is loud, brash, and arguably pretentious. But to criticise it for this is to ignore its sense of wonderful chaos. This play is expertly executed and will reward you for succumbing to its sinister whimsy.