THEATRE REVIEW: Another Universe
27.10.2022 Basement Theatre, Auckland
There’s a sense of both fear and excitement on the stage. The space is divided into two sections, starkly in contrast with each other and immediately intriguing. To the right there is a familiar apartment vibe - sofa, bag of chips, books. But, separated by a door frame, the left half of the stage is empty. There is only a box titled ‘Possibility’ on the floor.
Miss leading AKA Nadia Freeman manifests the space between opportunity and regret through spoken word. Her words yearn for lost experiences, lost connections and lost opportunities. There’s a terrifying intimacy in Another Universe, with Freeman staring directly into your eyes, close enough to feel the words hit. It’s confrontational. It made me think of the opportunities I had missed, the regrets I had.
“Miss leading AKA Nadia Freeman manifests the space between opportunity and regret through spoken word. Her words yearn for lost experiences, lost connections and lost opportunities”
The dialogue and stage direction created a feel of wandering through memories - The entire performance made me think of that very particular nostalgia you get when cleaning an old room and finding objects that remind you of the past. It’s bittersweet and heartbreaking. The stage direction of putting objects into the ‘Possibility’ box was also visually poignant. When do we let go of things in our past? When do we realize that an opportunity will never return? I also loved that when Freeman moved into the different spaces on stage, her acting changed. Her tone, rhythm, movement and vernacular were different. It showed us the starkness between the person we were, the person we are and the person we could be. Freeman also shows us that poetry and lyricism exist in everyday space; in thoughts and in memories. The fact this piece is completely in spoken word is a bold and powerful move. Freeman’s linguistic rhythm and sense of wordplay is fantastic.
“The entire performance made me think of that very particular nostalgia you get when cleaning an old room and finding objects that remind you of the past. It’s bittersweet and heartbreaking.”
I particularly loved the BIPOC perspective of opportunity and regret. As the child of immigrants, I have this opportunity scarcity complex, where I feel like declining an opportunity is a direct insult to my parents. There is a huge gap of difference between your opportunities and your ancestors' opportunities: you feel limitless, while your parents have been limited. It’s a very particular type of guilt surrounding regret and opportunity. Freeman manifested this fear and guilt exceptionally. Using rhythm and lyricism to really drive home this concept. “Opportunity costs”, she says, while unpacking a suitcase and putting the contents into the ‘Possibility’ box. I wrote this one down during the show, because it hit hard. To follow an opportunity can cost friends, familiarity, salary, everything. And to have opportunity, has cost your ancestors the very same.
I do think I could have done without the audio - Freeman’s words were strong enough without the layer of music or white noise in the background. She had such a strong presence on stage that I believe it would have been more powerful without the background audio. Being completely immersed in her poetry would have just elevated this piece for me.
Raw and honest, Another Universe is a lyrical journey through nostalgia, opportunity and regret. Nadia Freeman captures the overwhelming sense of yearning that humans have everyday. We yearn for what we can never regain. Excellent stage design and direction with beautiful spoken word dialogue, Another Universe is more than a show: It is an experience and it is a feeling.
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Book your tickets for Another Universe here!
Director: Moana Sina Ete
Cast: Nadia Freeman Aka Miss Leading
Producer And Script Advisor: Sananda Chatterjee
Sound And Visual Design: Marc Freeman