On the surface, this new show by Five Pigeons Pecking a Bin Bag is about a woman, Cassie (writer/performer Daniella Finch), who loves – or hates? – squirrels.
They are on posters all over her childhood bedroom, and she shares her school project on their behaviour with us. But it isn’t the full story.
Squirrel is funny, dark, and honest, and Finch’s script tackles family estrangement, therapy, and emotional instability through absurdist monologues and a sock-puppet therapist.
It’s about validation, loneliness,bad decisions, hoarding feelings, squirrelling away memories, and dealing with whatever life chooses to throw at you.
It’s a solo piece of sorts (Beth Wilson is the voice of the puppet and a couple of other roles), which is often dark and intermittently weird.
Squirrel is a piece of work that asks who we are and who we were, how we operate, and how we are often not kind to ourselves. In Cassie’s reactions and actions, we see how the baggage of the past can affect the present and future.
Director Ted Marriott keeps a strong pace while making Finch’s words and performance appear funny, strong, and original. The lighting and use of the space give the atmosphere to make the story work.
I really like the company’s sense of the absurd and the ridiculous while tackling tough subjects. The structure of monologues, which are twisted moments of black comedy, is very effective.
Squirrels touches on the cunning and duplicity of these rodents, comparing and contrasting in a way how Cassie has behaved in order to hide her emotional state.
It’s an interesting piece. Very different to Piss & Bile from the same company, which was also staged at The Space.
Squirrel is available on-demand until 23 Mar – tickets here.
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