Collateral Damage follows the story of the Laing family: Alex has just been released from prison and is staying with her sister Hailey. Hailey is a healthcare worker growing further concerned about their mother, until this point been successfully concealing her unemployed status and alcohol dependency from Hailey. With tragedy having caused rifts between them, the family come to terms with all that has happened to them, the different ways it’s impacted each of them, and give in to Hailey’s push for reconciliation. The production by Without Compromise Theatre is an affecting exploration of generational trauma, substance dependency, and complicated familial relationships.
All three of the cast members give compelling, moving, and authentic performances that are distinct and leave a lasting impression. The story is also written with thoughtfulness, care, and familiarity—it is well paced for such a brief production, and the heavy subject matter does not become overly melodramatic. There is a clear and consistent structured narrative with appropriate variation in the tone, including a number of witty comedic moments.
The story takes place in Glenrothes and tells an emotive tale that much of the working class across the British Isles would feel represented in, with dialogue that incorporates a range of Scots vocabulary typical of Fifers. Initially, I was somewhat concerned that the production was another depiction of Scottish working-class life as nothing but drinking, isolation, and melancholy. However, I appreciated that the production thoughtfully explored the realities of substance abuse, isolation, and melancholy while also showing the opportunity for betterment and the growth possible with the support of togetherness. The developments in the play (particularly starkly so in the last moments of the final scene) deliver the narrative to reach a happy ending without allowing the story to veer into fundamentally unrealistic. The happiness the Laings achieve is ambitious yet plausible, a life-like reflection of complex and challenging realities.
The show has a narrative that is supportive of recovery, reconciliation, and opening up—in this vein Without Compromise Theatre is using the production to raise money and awareness for the charity Change Mental Health.
Collateral Damage ran until 29 August at Stephenson Theatre at theSpace @ Surgeons’ Hall.
Image provided by theSpaceUK Press Office to The Student as press material.
