Theatre review: Sins Borne
Star rating: ***
Venue: theSpace @ Jury’s Inn (Venue 260)
It’s doubtful that’s strictly necessary as the play makes itself quite clear where it stands on the theme of racism (SPOILER: it’s against it) but it’s a nice touch – like a behind the scenes DVD extra.
EJ (John Baldwin) receives an unexpected visit from his estranged son, Barry (Lance Fuller) who he hasn’t seen since he bailed him out of jail ten years ago. Then everything goes to hell – quickly. To say more would spoil the surprises and there are a few. Braverman’s two-hander deals with big issues like the Black Lives Matter movement but in a palatably plot-driven manner without stretching credulity too far. The performances help, as it was written specifically for these two actors and it shows. Baldwin’s wears his carapace of emotional indifference like a grubby T-shirt while there’s something cheerfully unhinged about Lance Fuller’s nerdish enthusiasm. At 50 minutes this is necessarily slender but it’s well played, well written and well constructed and that can be a real rarity on the Fringe.
Until 27 August. Today 7:35pm.