[2012094] The Ballad of the Unbeatable Hearts
Richard Fry @ Higher Ground – Art Base
9:45pm, Tue 6 Mar 2012
On the raw strength of his previous performances, there was no doubt that I’d be seeing Richard Fry’s latest piece: Bully was a brutal emotional assault that left me wrecked; Smiler, whilst more upbeat, still packed a punch and gave the tear ducts a workout.
So imagine my surprise when The Ballad of the Unbeatable Hearts opens with a hint of adversity, and then becomes overwhelmingly positive; after failing his suicide attempt, a young gay man sets about making the world a better place. Stepping out from the darkness, his initial acts of support and kindness to other human beings are small, seemingly insignificant; but their effects are profound, encouraging a snowball effect that results in the formation of the Unbeatable Hearts – an ultra-inclusive, world-wide group of people being nice to everyone. Kindness begets kindness, and the whole world becomes better as a result.
It all seems to plausible, so tangible, so close – so it’s a double-whammy of despair when The Truth is revealed. But, in convincing you that the Unbeatable Hearts are just a few tiny acts of compassion away from reality, Fry manages to take a depressing premise – the high suicide rate of young men ostracised by their sexuality – and turns it into something uplifting.
The Ballad of the Unbeatable Hearts is, hands-down, Fry’s strongest performance yet. It’s a wonderfully-paced piece of writing, full of his usual rhymes and occasionally bumpy rhythms, and the emotional content of the piece is masterfully handled… it almost feels like he’s happy toying with the fans he’s garnered over the years, confounding their expectations somewhat with the twists in tone of the work. The optimism is unbridled and surprising, and the reality is dark and depressing… but together they form a wonderfully engaging piece of theatre.
And the little note that he hands out at the end of the show, providing suggestions about some of the small things you can do to become an Unbeatable Heart? So sweet. And so doable.