SNUFF

SNUFF. Written and Directed by Davey Anderson. The Arches Theatre Company, Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh. 10 August 2005.

Politically and socially charged events like the G8 Summit and "Make Poverty History" campaign thrust Edinburgh into the media limelight this summer. Images of white wristbands (of the "Live Strong" variety) and riot police found a temporary home on television sets in daily newscasts. As world leaders departed, the Festival Fringe introduced drama of an ostensibly different kind to the Scottish capital.

Violence underpinned much of the theatre taking place as practitioners used the Fringe space to express growing concerns about the state of our world, our cultures, and ourselves. Issues of terrorism, the military policies of the USA and the UK, immigration, and the dangers of globalization appeared on the theatrical frontline. A premiere production by Scottish playwright/director Davey Anderson directly addressed the violence and the barrage of the media footage playing a significant role in the ongoing military presence in Iraq and Afghanistan. Snuff forces a visceral reaction to this violence and our potentially desensitized reactions to it, evident in its opening moments.

The focus of the dark, claustrophobic space of Kevin's (Brian Ferguson) east-end Glasgow flat lies upstage center, where a small television sits precariously perched on a filing cabinet. Its screen vibrates with white lines, echoing the eerie white noise being pumped through the speakers. We see Kevin watching a home-made video in which he interviews his sister, Pamela (Siobhan Reilly). Onscreen, a fight erupts between the two, and an aggressive knock on Kevin's front door interrupts...