“Getting old,” retired detective Jim (Rob Gee) muses, “is a bit like getting mugged.” Jim is losing his mind and it’s coming at a bad time, since he has one final case to investigate: his wife’s suspicious death in a dementia ward.
Gee is an elastic performer who nimbly contorts through the dozen-plus characters. Forget Me Notis a moderately successful murder mystery, but the biggest strength is the melancholy streak that permeates the show.
There’s a lot going on, and the script might benefit from shedding a few elements, like the too on-the-nose scene-change music, or the endless mixed metaphors of the comic-relief police inspector. And, although Gee’s slam poetry background lends the narration charm, it distracts more than it adds.
Still, the production delivers a series of quiet emotional gut punches that justify the meandering. Forget Me Not is a bit like getting mugged, and Gee certainly knows how to land a knockout.
Remaining performances at the Revue Stage on September 9 (5:30 p.m.), 11 (7:45pm), 12 (6:45 p.m.), 15 (9:15 p.m.), and 16 (3:30 p.m.) > David Johnston
This is a guest review.
David Johnston is a Vancouver-based actor, aerialist, and writer, not in that order. He recently hailed from the Edmonton Fringe, where he saw many excellent shows and also ate a green onion cake. The green onion cake got three-and-a-half stars. David is a recent graduate of Studio 58, and is currently writing a script about reviews, so this should be a rather meta experience. He’s delighted to join FRESH SHEET for the Vancouver Fringe.
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