29 September 2023 I 19:30 I Cast, Doncaster
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
What a privilege it is to see Gecko perform live after being influenced by their performance style as a theatre maker! I have seen some recorded performances in the past, though there is something so special and endearing about Kin. Inspired by Artistic Director Amit Lahav's grandmother, audiences are embedded within tales of relentless, tortured relationships and heart-breaking survival. However, we are treated to much more beyond the media's portrayal of immigration. We see humanity, pride in heritage and persistence when life reaches the impossible. This piece of theatre is unbelievably encouraging, treating life as something to be treasured.
Gecko are an international physical theatre company, priding themselves on their collaborative devising process. Not only does Kin feature a phenomenal display of talent, but the cast and creative team invites a diverse array of nationalities to tell their stories. We see what community means from across the globe, exuding authenticity to audiences. Through worldwide culture, this performance is multilingual, though the medium of movement and universal expression allows every emotion to be understood instantly. There is a charming section where we are invited to clap along with a performer. This is endlessly powerful beyond the silliness, because although we do may not all understand the spoken language, the joy of a clapped rhythm could be shared with the characters and audience alike, no matter your mother tongue.
As a collaborative role, movement direction is executed with such a precise control. Dance is geographically inspired, containing a warmth and essence of home, as we are invited into someone's life away from ours. And while choreographed stylings can demonstrate joy, it often becomes a vehicle for hurt. Within the blink of an eye, a home morphs into an unstable raft in the centre of the ocean, the impermanence of home provoking anxiety. Something which continuously impresses me is Gecko's use of pacing. Transitionally, the story is one long thread of history, and conflict is represented using staccato gesture, isolating performers and utilising the space to heighten a claustrophobia.
The visual aesthetics of Gecko's performance are magnetic, and this finds it's power through Chris Swain's intimate states of lighting. A lot of these images rely on handheld lighting or bulbs, rather than the conventional house lights. This forms a darker stage, though it pulls your attention in with an unsettling tone, where anything could come from the darkness and alter your world. Rhys Jamson's set design amplifies this, utilising a revolve in Vanessa Guevara Flores' impassioned search for safety. Abstraction can be up to our interpretation, and perhaps hold elements of relatability to connect on an emotional level.
There are brief moments of puppetry, with faceless figures coming to life as parental roles. Initially, these bare wooden faces can feel somewhat intimidating, though they gain a wise, nurturing quality. An ancestor perhaps, breathing life into the limbs as a reflection that these struggles are frozen in time, tens, hundreds of years on.
I feel grateful to Gecko for this display of heritage through Kin. Though not only are we being shown the heart of culture, but we see the hardships, and we see how nationalities can be forcefully stripped away. There is a scene where eastern performers undergo a representation of skin lighting, with a streak of white makeup. The image alone can make you feel sick to your stomach. Not in a frustrated way, rather devastation that race is weaponised in such a form. To see a choice between one's culture, and essentially staying alive (represented with Jamson's costume design), I really hope this message can reach audiences internationally, as it is an aspect on immigration I have lacked awareness in. This is by far the most powerful statement I have EVER seen on stage, I will never forget Kin.
A sequence during the show's final moments sees each performer break the fourth wall, and introduce their names as actors, where they come from, and what home / the UK means to them. As an audience member, this is a pleasure to see the humans and inspirations behind the piece, but it allows you to view the piece with a softer eye. To understand that these stories of migration aren't simply dramatized for theatre, but tragedies that haunt the real world.
An intertwining story of belonging, survival and family, Gecko's new production of Kin is exactly the show that the world needs. It allows itself to be entertaining while educating in vital stories. Created by, and featuring the extraordinary Amit Lahav, this is Gecko's strongest performance by far! The show may undergo minor changes in rehearsal, but the rest of the world should be ready for Kin, because I can guarantee it will change lives.
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