True Stories of Heroism and Adventure
Co2 @ Iris Cinema
7:00pm, Fri 5 Mar 2010
I never did the whole backpacking thing; when I travel, I like to have creature comforts at the end of the day. I do, however, envy those who have done the backpacking experience; I can only imagine the camaraderie that comes from the intersecting travels of people wandering the globe, each taking their own route of discovery but still keeping in contact and bumping into each other on another continent, creating lasting friendships grounded in unusual circumstances.
And that, largely, is what True Stories is all about.
It follows Jackie, tentatively backpacking by herself after being spurned by her best friend. She meets the more experienced travel-buddies Flick and Chris, and gets dragged into their quest to get to the legendary backpacking destination of El Cargando. Along the way, there’s the expected romantic flings, a bizarre wolf segment, a fantastic visit to the anonymous, Metropolis, the death of Jackie’s brother, and a brilliant nightclub scene; and it’s all connected with a lot of compassion for – and between – the characters.
I found True Stories of Heroism and Adventure to be a lovely little piece of Fringe theatre; full of youthful excitement, the three actors (Stephanie Iredale, Emily Morrison, and Julian Dibley-Hall) all flit between different characters with ease. Sure, the acting is occasionally patchy, and the pacing of the script is a bit variable, but the enthusiasm and heart on display was more than enough to carry it through.