While we spin on our earth and rocket around our sun, it’s easy to forget that we are all on one long flight of 2 billion years through multiple generations to reach our destruction. This thought may be slightly unsettling but we are quick to forget this timeline and return to dreaming: to wish for the end of our problems, to desire fulfillment in our future.
Meet Theo. The man with the box. He doesn’t go anywhere without his box. He’s gotta have his box. Without his box, he’s nothing. It’s useful, capable, plenty of storage space and peace of mind. Inside the box, nobody bothers him. The outside world just disappears. No need to worry, no need to fret. It’s predictable, it’s structured. It gives his imagination free reign, free range, freedom.
Meet his girlfriend Penelope. She doesn’t like the box, she resents the box, she wishes the box will go away. She wishes the same attention the box gets. If only Theo saw her as the box. So she tries to be the box: predictable, structured, useful, capable, plenty of storage space and peace of mind.
They both work at the Box Factory, commuting every day through the busy streets to make sure that each box is certified for quality and durability. After all, the Box Factory is known for being predictable, structured, useful, capable, with plenty of storage space and peace of mind.
Meet Alejandro. He’s the founder and owner of the Box Factory. He is very proud of his boxes and of his business. He also has a thing for Penelope. This thing is the opposite of the box factory. It is unpredictable, unstructured, not very useful, not very capable, with very little storage space and no peace of mind. It is very attractive.
Penelope discovers that she wants that thing, too. Impatience and dissatisfaction are powerful and encourages pursuit of the thing between them.
Alejandro sells his box factory to a much larger company bringing untold wealth and freedom. It also brings Penelope. And it brings automation and downsizing.
Is the obsession of one’s fears a self-fulfilling prophecy? It appears to be the case with Theo. He loses what he most fears of losing. But he’s free. A terrifying thought.
But let’s not forget that our solar system is rocketing around Milky Way galaxy.
Loneliness and isolation can also be a self-fulfilling prophecy. It appears so in Theo’s case. The more he thinks about how lonely and isolated he is the more his imagination runs wild.
Nature has a way of devouring strays. Theo’s indiscretion has stuck out so far, he’s in danger of getting bit. Sometimes, a bite is all that’s needed to invite a serpent-like energy, courage, and power. Self-knowledge can be the result of such a bite. Or a megalomania that devours humanity. Theo falls hard.
Meanwhile, Alejandro and Penelope fall to their indulgences and split apart. A mutual, solo downward spiral.
When Theo strays from himself, he splits. Hard to keep two selves in one mind. Good way to fall to madness. Loss of control. Scary.
Enough is enough. Sometimes, all it takes is a stand. Theo asserts his will and sprints into the future, more to escape from the schism and less to some known destination. He runs with piercing focus and brutal intensity, unwilling and unable to stop.
Until Calypso.
She forces a crash landing captivating Theo with entwining tenderness. He is lost once again.
She wants him to complete her. Gives him everything he could ever want. He gives in. And is lost.
Again, he splits. Torn apart for good this time. Hanging by a thread.
Penelope and Alejandro see Theo in distress. In helping him they help themselves. Everyone heals. For now.
He’s given another chance. This time, he sees that his shadow side will never go away, will always be present, will always be ready to divide and conquer when the conditions are ripe. Theo must prepare...
... and so must you. Come to the live show at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival! For Date, Venue, and ticket information – Click here.