The Vault, with its underground cavern, is the perfect venue to stage the subterranean drama which is The DeadsHit , a tale which examines the juncture between the mysterious world of Limbo and the equally mysterious world of Karaoke.
Leading in with a video piece, the live action kicks off with a high energy Karaoke performance of “Born to Be Alive” by our hero of the story, Raymond. After this opening the play takes a while to warm up but once it does it gathers a momentum of its own.
This show features Jamie McCarney as the hapless Raymond, stuck in the world between heaven and hell together with Kate Simmondson and Ged Cogley in a variety of roles including Kate as Raymond’s bogan sister and Ged’s devilishly charming messenger from hell (plus a memorably manic turn as Dr Phil). Each of the actors turn in energetic performances, relishing in the comedic potential of their roles.
The live action is interspersed with a variety of video sequences. A lot of the video pieces work well in informing the narrative and keeping the action moving, although at times these pieces can become a bit long winded and over milk some of the ideas. Stand out video’s however include a recording of Raymond’s death as well as the fifties sitcom send up which, with over the top innuendo and lager than life performances is like a parody of Benny Hill meets Leave it to Beaver meets English panto.
The extended sequence exploring alternate lives Raymond might have lived, seemed to chew up a bit more time than it validated and seemed a little out of place in the narrative as a whole. Also the finale to this show, although high camp, doesn’t match up to the inventiveness of some the more raucous moments of the piece. Overall though, the script worked well and had many big moments of hilarity, as well as an interesting dialogue, touching on issues of social theology, between Ged’s devil character and Kate’s angel character as they discuss the reality of existing in their respective abodes.
This is good fun play, which is certainly on the good side of delivering the laughs. The performances are energetic and captivating and there is a lot to enjoy in the script. It’s well worth the effort to check out DeadsHit.