It’s been a tiring Fringe for the best of us, what with the terrible weather and the mystery lurgy that’s going round, but the cast of Jack Pleasure seem to be badly hit. Much of the vigour displayed at the C showcase is gone but the cast still manage to pull off a decent performance. In fact, the lack of energy fits curiously well with the feel of this play.
Set in the sad world of a spirituality lost bus driver, Jack Pleasure follows Terry as he tries to escape his humdrum life by getting into the porn industry. Formulated from a fixation with blue movies, Terry’s unlikely dream pulls him further away from is estranged wife and widens the inevitable divide between him and his father.
The cast may be lacking vim, but this sad story is driven along by a strong script and society’s desire for something better out of life, no matter how implausible. Punctuated with a dry humour, Jack Pleasure comes across as a Full Monty for the stage, but grounded in reality.
This slightly sordid journey is comprised of some truly brilliant moments and a lot of humdrum monotony. Terry’s moments on the bus are a real standout (definitely not the service you get on the National Express), but you can’t help but feel that a little more humour could be injected into the script.
All in all Jack Pleasure is a well written, sad and gritty tale, but the lack of energy lets it down slightly.
3/5
Richard Biggs
