Fringe Review: MAN OR BEAR, Red Lecture Theatre at Summerhall

Photo credit: Hugo Glendinning

Three microphones stand equidistant across the stage in the Red Lecture Theatre, Summerhall. Directed by Ursula Martinez, Man or Bear begins with three women describing a street. A street of terraced houses that could easily be one street over, your street, my street. Something has happened at number 66, there’s an ambulance. 

Inspired by the question: would you rather be alone in the woods with a man or a bear? Man or Bear is a tale about female resilience told through three different generations of women. It begins with Connie (Lesley Ewen) helping Paige (Katie Hurley) and her fifteen-year-old daughter Angel (Amaia Naima Aguinaga) find a new place to live. Through present day and flashbacks, the audience watch as Paige and Angel learn to live their new lives and the role that Connie plays. With vulnerability and strength, the actors shine throughout the performance. It is a moving homage to women and a glance at the violence and abuse they can face from men.

Spellbinding storytelling shows scenes interspersed with narration at the microphones where the tone changes and something prickles in the atmosphere. From discos in the kitchen to a chilling feeling of something lurking, somewhere, Man or Bear captures how pervasive fear can be, even when you thought you had escaped. Cardboard boxes and makeshift chairs form the rest of the set, capturing the flight of women from abusers and how unstable and unsettled it can make peoples lives. 

Intelligent writing creates three characters that you can resonate with, that the three vividly talented actors breathe life into with have nuance and depth. Through each generation, the performance underlines how abuse can change lives. It is an electric, spiralling performance that commands the room. As the tension ratchets up and storylines converge, the ending will leave you breathless.

Man or Bear focuses on the story of the victims, their lives that are so much more than the perpetrator and how support is never far away. It is a stark but touching reminder that people are kind too. Heartbreaking but imperative, Man or Bear is striking, urgent theatre that makes for required watching.

***** Five stars

Reviewed by: Hannah Goldswain

Man or Bear plays at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe until 30 Aug, with further info here.