Epitaph, Drama Barn
Rating: 
The untimely death of a woman and the resulting grief are not, perhaps, the obvious subjects for comedy. But Ollie Jones’s production of Epitaph at the Drama Barn had audiences laughing from beginning to end.
The play is a series of cleverly linked sketches following friends Cory and Warren as they attempt to cope with the death of Georgia, a woman they both secretly loved. The character list far outnumbers the cast list, requiring the two actors to constantly flit between colourful roles, including an overdramatic French travel agent and a rather ignorant doctor.
Epitaph’s wit is brilliantly absurd, highlighting, for example, the lunacy of our consumerist society as we witness a brainstorming session in which pharmaceutical representatives consider naming an ambiguous orange pill ‘boobs ‘n’ pussy’. However, its most effecting moments come when comedy chimes darkly with grief, exposing the depth of loss.
The intimacy of the Drama Barn and the stage’s absence of props or scenery, save two chairs, meant that a stumble or missed beat in this incredibly fast paced piece would have been painfully noticeable, ruining the dazzling fluidity and offbeat comedy of the writing.
However, Nikolaus Morris and Chris Bush provided flawless performances, injecting complex scenes with spontaneity and capturing the moments of beautifully dark comedy perfectly.
