Fool’s Proof Theatre: It’s Uniformation Day

The production’s premise centres on a futuristic ceremony in the form of the titular ‘Uniformation Day’, with the three performers representing the candidates chosen to participate. The show aims to explore issues of human identity using experimental theatrical techniques, and achieves the creation of a very bizarre futuristic world where the parameters are ever-changing and nothing is quite what it seems. The performers themselves are physically dexterous and possess an energy that successfully drives the very strange, disjointed narrative forwards, revealing some of their characters' flaws as they go along. The audience are involved with this journey to an extent (to specify how too exactly would perhaps ruin the experience) and this helps one to remain engaged for the most part.

A sense of menacing dystopia is achieved through some imaginative staging, in particular the use of large plastic sheets wrapped around bodies and an absorbing sequence using a life-sized figure made of bubble wrap. This is a production full of big ideas and some thought-provoking concepts, but they are not always executed with clarity. The disjointed world, alien in itself, also risks alienating its audience; there are times when the action, despite its serious delivery, becomes ridiculous; this is possibly the intention, but makes the overall point of the piece unclear. The performers are clearly committed to their roles, but the production feels as if it needs more coherence even within its exploration of experimental techniques, and particularly in drawing all of the complex strands together in the end.