Shona Graham and BJA Productions present Fractured – the play follows Eva as she struggles to piece together her reality following the crash that changed everything. Playing at Underbelly Cowgate (Belly Dancer) until 30th August as part of the Edinburgh Fringe. Fractured is a story about memory, shame and grief. It’s about the little bad things that inexorably lead to the big bad thing. It’s about the magnetism of the past to anyone refusing to face it.
Shona Graham is at the helm for scribing this gripping, fragmented play and also portraying the lead character, Eva. As Eva, Shona pushes the narrative along with naturalism, comedic nuance and poignant emotion. Her disoriented journey means she is constantly on stage and must hold the audience’s engagement, which she does brilliantly.
Shona is joined on stage by a strong supporting cast. Andrew Atha does well as Eva’s troubled brother, Rob. Andrew brings unpredictability to the character, yet there’s a brotherly warmth there which makes the character accessible. Samantha Kalnin-Wright portrays both Talia and Mum, where there is a good energy, and Samantha does well to build tension. However, at points there is little differentiation between the characters Samantha portrays which sometimes lessens the switch between characters or their intention within the scene. Misha Salinas as Paul and Hal does well to differentiate between characters with the laid back and casual portrayal of Paul into the rather uptight and clinical portrayal of Hal. The cast of four do well to help build this world and create the fragmentation needed for the piece.
As a debut play, Shona Graham has developed a brilliant concept for the Edinburgh Fringe. Fractured does well to explore relationships, trauma and internal hardship. There are some nice parallels to Matthew Graham and Ashley Pharaoh’s BBC drama, Life On Mars. An argument could be had that the fragmented element of Fractured could be more cohesive. The narrative sometimes takes a back seat in favour of the style of the production and makes it a tad too muddled for the audience to coherently piece together Eva’s timeline.
Sally Wood’s direction complements the contemporary style of the play. The limited space in Belly Dancer is used to its full potential. Once the lights are down, it feels like you’re in purgatory or an abyss, where characters approach out of the darkness to enter Eva’s mind. This is very effective. The text does indicate a higher-tension affair than the direction allows, with the play verging on a psychological thriller – It feels like the pace, abruptness and disturbing elements could be ramped up, and the absurdist moments where Eva’s mind is flinging her to different points in her timeline could be leaned into so it feels more unsettling.
Fractured is a complex and punchy contemporary drama which explores trauma, relationships and memory loss. Whilst this production has its flaws, it’s a great piece of new writing with a gripping concept.
Get tickets for Fractured here – https://underbellyedinburgh.co.uk/event/fractured
Theatre Scotland 
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