Created by Kenzie Barrera
Produced by Lavender Productions | Ottawa, ON
Review by Samara Caplan and Laura Gauthier
45 mins / M / Drama, Crime, Immersive, Storytelling, Thriller
Welcome to the experiment.
When two strangers find themselves trapped in separate dark rooms, where they can only hear each other through a wall, they have no idea what they are in store for. Brought into a societal experiment, unclear if they will ever get to leave, friction, and emotions run high.
Participating against their will, the experiment requires them to open up and get vulnerable to avoid repercussions. Selected partially because of their opposing lives and values, this request does not come easy. Things get tense and emotional, and the weight of the experiment pushes the subjects to their edge.
Image for Authentication. Photo provided.
The staging of chairs and crates is simple but effective, building the feeling of confinement and isolation of the subjects. The use of increased visible injuries over their time in confinement adds to the character development as they navigate the less-than-legitimate scenario they have found themselves in and the ticking clock audio marks the passing of time in a straightforward and seamless way.
A creative concept that is played out exceptionally well by the actors shows the complexity of honesty and connection. Relying on the person on the other side of the wall for their ultimate survival is a challenge both subjects struggle to meet.
Authentication looks at how vulnerability can be both a strength and a hindrance and the barriers we face in building real human connection and audience members get not only a chance to ponder this scenario but vote on it as well.
Authentication is playing at Arts Court Theatre from June 14–22. Tickets are $14 plus service fees at the Fringe box office (3rd floor, Arts Court, 2 Daly Avenue), and at the three satellite box offices (LabO in the Ottawa Art Gallery, Fringe Courtyard, 67 Nicholas St and La Nouvelle Scène). Five and ten Show Passes are also available. Visit the Ottawa Fringe Festival’s website for the show’s schedule and check out their online schedule here.
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