ABSOLUT Fringe 2012 | Bandit | Brian O'Riordan

Star Rating: 3.5/5

Venue: Bewley’s Café Theatre
Review by: Caomhan Keane

Bandit will suffer due to comparisons with Fight Night, a show with which it shares a director (Bryan Burroughs) and concept (former top youth athlete-here a runner, overcomes paternal adversity by returning to his sporting roots). A charming performance from its writer, Brian O'Riordan, gives it its own appeal. And while it stumbles at curtain up, indulging in the characters ‘destructive’ spoiled little rich kid behaviour instead of the race and present day characters, once he hits his stride the show really takes off.

Set as his character competes in the Dublin Marathon - jogging on the spot as he sprints back and forth through time, O'Riordan shows skill in portraying the numerous characters that grace the stage. His childhood friend and fiercest competitor; his flirtatious pacemaker; his little sister. There are times when he has bitten off more than he can chew and gives us too much unnecessary back story, which can make us feel like we are on well tread ground. But when he really zeros in on what propels him and levels his competition, the piece is filled with the infectious thrill of the chase.

Some of the plot points confuse or seem unresolved, yet the way O'Riordan expresses emotion during the different emotional states of his characters simply by changing the way they pant makes up for the jarring bravado of the earlier segments and by the plays conclusion you genuinely root for this prodigal son.

Story by EI Team | 09:00 | Tuesday 18th September 2012 | Theatre

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