Created and performed by trio Noah Manzoor, Kai Porter and Alfie Wickham, Heart Beats Strong is a show filled to the brim with personality and abundant creativity.
The choreography plays with physical comedy to bring an entirely fresh style of show to the Fringe. Most obvious is the dancing, which mainly blends strokes of hip-hop and commercial to pack a punch full of uplifting energy. The joy of the team radiates off them and into the audience, putting smiles on everyone’s faces. But some moments are quieter, complimenting narratives’ moods, with clever periods of slow-motion and swooping moves paired with impactful, synchronised breathwork. Furthermore, stand lights are not merely for lighting but also for staging, creating intimate spaces for solo conversation one second, and taking on the role of someone’s girlfriend the next.
While the fine-tuned choreography alone would have made for an interesting performance, the writing ensures the overarching conversations around masculinity and identity are reflected in realistic anecdotes. Across an hour, dozens of different adolescent men are portrayed by the trio, each with their own perceptions on the world, themselves, and what it means to be a man. There are three young men in particular that we follow throughout, navigating differing experiences of race, sexuality, and family. From scene to scene, they beautifully show how multifaceted each character is and how personalities shift as dynamics change based on the surrounding place and people. While one may be a “lad’s lad” in the pub and at school, taunting and bantering with his mates, in the shelter of home, he enjoys a quiet bath. By the end of the show, there’s a whole community of young men represented by the three stood on stage.
Despite the serious thoughts the script provokes, humour allows you to feel as if you’re hanging out with the boys themselves. Perfectly timed moments of breaking the fourth wall and intense eye contact with the audience pull us into the worlds of these three young men as they struggle through life’s hurdles and pressure themselves to understand who they are. You can truly see the trio’s personalities shine through and their friendship outside of the theatre, which only enhances the joy the show creates.
Full of reminders about the chaos and beauty in both comedy and life, Heart Beats Strong is a must see at this year’s Fringe due to its personable and one-of-a-kind nature. If the opportunity arises to see it again the future, I will certainly be back in a heartbeat.
Heart Beats Strong is running until 31 August (excluding 25) at Bunker Two, Pleasance Courtyard. Buy tickets here.
Image provided by Chloé Nelkin Consulting to The Student as press material.
