Theatre Review: Feel Me, Tobacco Factory Theatres

Summary:

Feel Me is a new interactive show from The Paper Birds theatre company
which asks the audience to put themselves in the shoes of its main character who has been
forcibly displaced and to change the story unfolding on stage by using your mobile phone
to answer prompts. It is a test of empathy, a show which asks you to challenge your
preconceptions and use technology for good.

Rating: ★★★★

Running Dates: Tuesday 30th April 2024 – Wednesday 1st May 2024

Where to see it: Tobacco Factory Theatres

Duration: 80 minutes

Keywords: Empathy, Interactive, Forced Displacement, Technology

Review

What is forced displacement? How do you relate to it? Perhaps not at all. But that doesn’t matter here, because Feel Me is all about empathy

This new interactive show uses film projection, live performance, dance, music and the audience to tell the story of someone who has been forced to leave their home and take on an arduous journey to safety.

It’s been some time since I have watched anything like this. A touch arty some might feel, a strong message and a complex premise could have some people turning away, but Feel Me is an accessible, clever and funny show.

When I sat down in the theatre, I realised I was surrounded by a lot of school children. Clearly this was THE show for any budding drama student to attend. The crowd was noisy and rambunctious and I really wasn’t sure I was going to enjoy myself, but by the end, Feel Me had taken all of my attention. It calmed the crowd with humour, movement, impressive visuals, and emotional performances, and by the end, it even had us shedding a few tears.

Feel Me could be sharper. A few sequences were much longer than others, and with some minor tweaks, the pacing of the show would be much crisper. There was also a scene in which a number of toothbrushes and houseplants were puppeteered across a table which I could have done without…

But for the most part, Feel Me is a really clever show. Seeing choices that you make as an audience be realised on stage is a fascinating concept. At one point you are asked to pick up your phone and choose between a list of items to bring with you from home if you were forcibly displaced. The items that the majority of the audience choose are then popped into the backpacks of our three main actors who are all portraying the same central character, and these choices affect the direction of the show. You soon realise that choosing to take a toothbrush and a mobile phone with you over food and water is rather foolish when your main goal after being forcibly displaced would be to survive.

The interactivity of the show also allows for the show to take on many forms. Audiences change every night and therefore the choices that people make will change and in turn, the show will change. I’d like to have seen it again to spot the differences and perhaps make different choices myself (picking a toothbrush really was so stupid!). It would have also been good to see the performers take on different things as they were very captivating to watch, each of them adding their own flare to the choreographed movements and central character. Additionally, what I find particularly intriguing is that Feel Me could be done about a variety of different topics, making it very easy for the show to be expanded upon and tackle different subject matters.

Ultimately, the potential of Feel Me is very exciting. Lil McGibbon, Daz Scott and Kiren Virdee of The Paper Birds theatre company have created a good show which asks you to consider your thoughts and feelings on the subject matter before you and to be part of the show by interacting with it via your mobile phone, a concept which could be expanded upon indefinitely. As much I enjoyed the show and would absolutely recommend seeing it, a few edits here and there would really push this beyond its infancy and into a sharper, more deeply empathetic place.

Standout Quote or Moment: The harsh jump cut from a panicked and worried journey with our main character to them standing in a line for temporary accommodation. A really intelligent and funny moment in the show.

Last Impression: A show with so much potential that begs to be seen more than once to see how it morphs and changes based on the audiences choices.

To see Tobacco Factory Theatres upcoming shows click here

To get tickets for the show click here

We were kindly gifted these tickets in exchange for a review.

Written by Amy Evans