Troubled begins in a very untroubling manner — with complimentary Tunnock’s teacakes. As the audience enters Summerhall’s Anatomy Lecture Theatre, writer-performer Suzy Crothers hands out blankets, biscuits, and welcomes us to fall asleep if we so desire. It’s an unusual and wonderfully accommodating beginning to a show that will, rest assured, delve into far less comfortable ground.
Troubled tells the tale of Crothers’ life: from her childhood in Belfast (against the backdrop of — you guessed it — the Troubles), to her adult life in London. Throughout, the recurring themes are ones of mental illness and familial trauma — Crothers’ performance style is one of immense charm and gentle storytelling, as she discusses these troubling topics with an endless reserve of care and composure. That’s not to say Troubled ever veers into the overly-sentimental (Crothers is, self-described, “cheesy as fuck”): it’s a very funny show, too, with many an absurd sketch to keep the audience on their toes.
A particular highlight is Crothers’ enactment of “her voices”: naturally, Ian Paisley and Gerry Adams. Crothers’ voices (or, metaphorically, Paisley-Adams) embody our narrator’s self-hatred, self-doubt, and tendency for self-harm: “Do you really think the people want to see a woman banging on, being mental?” asks Paisley or Adams. “Yes”, is the audience answer, as we root for our endlessly sympathetic performer guiding us through this surprisingly diverse show of part-romance, part-family drama, and part-historical documentary.
Set-wise, the projector behind the stage is a key tenet of the show, alternately displaying footage of the Troubles with beautiful drawings of Troubled’s cast of characters: it’s very effective and very moving. Ultimately, Troubled ends on an uplifting and slightly spiritual note, as Crothers embodies Saint Martha the Dragonslayer of her mother’s religion and overcomes some of her own, personal, individual troubles.
Troubled is running until 25 August at Anatomy Lecture Theatre at Summerhall.
Buy tickets here.
Image courtesy of Rich Lakos, provided to The Student as press material.