Richard Wright’s 50-minute Forgotten is a beautifully written, moving play that questions what happens when stories die, and the creative afterlife of the characters who exist within them.
The cast work tirelessly to bring this show to life. The play opens with a woman sitting at a desk, meticulously organising papers and stationery. We learn that her job is strictly filing, so when her manager asks her to deviate from this normality and conduct one-on-one interviews with storybook characters, she freaks out.
However, after meeting Michael, an old man from a story no longer told, she opens up emotionally to a creative world in which she can help lost characters find their way back to some kind of home. The woman (after many frustrating attempts) helps Michael understand that his story died because it failed to get passed down by the family that kept it alive. She points out the fragility of the oral tradition, yet the futility of the written one where books sit on shelves collecting dust, humorously suggesting audiobooks as the perfect middle-ground.
Wright, through his simple yet evocative writing, purposely creates a sense of openness. Neither space nor time within this play is definitive; the audience is never explicitly told what this mysterious place is that holds archives, storybook characters, and dreadful food (cookbooks are non-fiction). This ambiguity allows the audience to interpret the story as literally or metaphorically as they wish. Wright’s blurring of the boundary between fiction and reality allows for the overarching themes of loss and grief to come to the centre, whether this be Michael’s loss of his former home and friends, or the woman reliving the loss of her son in her own tragic story.
Whilst there is certainly a melancholic element in this play, as we reflect upon our own stories that will one day be lost to history, Wright’s skilled writing leaves room for humour and hope. The woman’s conversation with Michael forces her to reconsider her filing job, as she now craves a role where she can exercise humanity and creativity.
Forgotten touches on concepts that are so deeply human, and through admirable direction and the work of a brilliant cast, skilfully brings these concepts to life.
Forgotten is running until 15 August at The Sprout Studio, Greenside on George Street. Buy tickets here.
Image credit to Photo by Iñaki del Olmo on Unsplash.
