Where
Cavern at The Vaults, Leake Street Tunnels, Waterloo.
When
10-15 Mar, 7.50pm. Running time 1 hr.
Who
Written by Cat Kolubayev, directed by Anastasia Bruce-Jones, produced by Kitty Wordsworth. Performed by Adeline Waby, Madison Clare, and Helena Antoniou.
What
“An all-female dark comedy, showing the dirty side of an already filthy job”.
How
Bin Juice is a new play by Cat Kolubayev which mixes the traditional thriller structure with black comedy. With the audience set on either side of the performing area in the damp and creepy Cavern, a tale unfolds of dark dealings in the hazardous waste industry as Belinda (aka Barney, played by Helena Antoniou), attends a job interview.
Unsettling from the start, the action moves through Belinda’s interrogation by the loud and aggressive Francine (Adeline Waby) to her first couple of days in the job. It becomes apparent that what seems on the surface to be a regular, if unsavoury, job, is something far more sinister.
The third character is Marla (Madison Clare), a little slow on the uptake, easily led. This aspect reminded me a bit of an Of Mice and Men situation or the argument that a child (or childlike adult) cannot fully comprehend the gravity of their actions.
With Tingying Dong’s atmospheric soundscape, and Holly Ellis’s stark lighting, Kolubayev’s drama weaves its way into the dark corners of the underworld of crime, building in tension as it goes. Anastasia Bruce-Jones came late to the project as director, but is perfectly in tune with the piece and its physical and vocal rhythms.
The performances are broadly defined, with Waby in particular always on the verge of exploding, but this is keenly effective at key moments such as the mention of one paticular word, or the chilling ending.
Judgement: Wow, Meow, or Furred Brow?
I liked Bin Juice a lot and so it’s a Wow. A tightly constructed drama on the worst jobs in the world and the effect on those at the bottom of the corporate pile. It also feels very cinematic and I can see this potentially finding a future as a small-screen piece.
LouReviews received a complimentary ticket to see Bin Juice.