Wednesday, 22 January 2025

SPARK review

Sequels suck. Or so people say. The main criticism being they are a rehash of what came before it with no real exploration of fresh ideas or character development. In 2023, Ryan Henry presented his work CULT, an examination of acceptance through a queer lens of fitness and achieving the ultimate body. Fast forward to 2025, and Henry returns with the sequel to CULT: SPARK. While it definitely doesn't suck, there is a lack of ... spark in this production that looks at love, self-acceptance and self-awareness through a technologically centred queer lens.



In SPARK, Henry plays Simon a 30-year-old gay man who is still single! After an awkward date in which he has turned a gay man straight, Simon is visited by a digital assistant called Iris (spell it backwards), who is determined to help him uncover his authentic true self and what exactly he is seeking. With his phone battery charge indicative of the looming deadline, Simon experiences various dates and transformations to try and find the right guy.



Unfortunately the dates we see him go on are ones we've seen numerous times before. They don't leave an impact and feel like time-filler as we know where they are inevitably going to go. However, the end scene with Rupert Bevan and Henry – and the subtle lead ups to it - offers dramatic moments and some emotional investment as to what will happen to Simon.



Henry has an irresistible liveliness to him, and his physicality and facial expressions keep the energy high. Having written the show, his performance is natural and displays a clear understanding of who Simon is and what his motivations, drives and fears are. Cassidy Dunn is great as the overenthusiastic and to-the-point Iris. She serves as a comparable foil to Simon, even though they are both working towards the same goal.



SPARK also touches on our obsession with smartphones with different apps like Grammar Lee, Dua (Lingo), and Ooh-Berh-Eytz - offering Simon their assistance, or annoyance. Alas, these don't add depth to the story and their presence interrupts the flow of the primary focus. The performances in these instances are exaggerated and come across as trying hard to make the material funny.



Sidney Younger's lighting design works well in taking us further into Simons' frame of mind and Belle Hansen incorporates sound and light seamlessly into her direction. The dance numbers with the 11-person cast are well executed and the design of the space brings with it an intimacy that also highlights Simon's performative nature with a catwalk-like structure running along the back of the stage.



Despite the positive elements to this production, SPARK suffers because it is attempting to do too much, tell too much and show too much. Its 80-minute runtime could drop to 60 and allow for a more anchored and compelling story without all the loud distractions and purposeless scenes.


Show Details

Venue: Theatre Works, 14 Acland St, St. Kilda
Season: until 25 January | 7:30pm
Duration: 80 minutes
Tickets: $38 Full | $33 Concession
Bookings:
 Theatre Works

Image credit: Hannah Jennings

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