Review: Burning Down the Horse (Pleasance Dome)

A sandal-clad power struggle

Usually, a critic aims to be a fly on the wall, to blend into the crowd and let the performance unfold before them. But for some shows, it is only honest to get right amongst it by sitting yourself and your reluctant, introverted friend in the front row. So it was with Burning Down the Horse, an immersive comedy from Fishing for Chips in which the cast and the whole audience are sat within the famous Trojan Horse, waiting for almost certain death. But what I expected (an escalating series of high-stakes audience participation set-ups akin to something like Say It Again, Sorry’s The Importance of Being…Earnest?) was very different to what we got.

We meet some of our fellow soldiers, such as the doltish Echeon (Sean Wareing), our egotistical leader Odysseus (Freddie Walker), and a rebellious carpenter who is roped into the mission against his will (Conor Joseph). We stand when we are told, hide contraband, take part in votes, and a couple of us are picked out for special roles, but the participation is surprisingly minimal. Immersion, in this performance, is perhaps more literal. There is more eye contact, a greater use of space, and we, the audience, are a part of the story – a story that turns unexpectedly dramatic. It is certainly funny, largely due to the performances, but the discussion about how to overthrow Odysseus has an unexpected depth about how far we are willing to go for our beliefs. Joseph’s performance beautifully balances both the drama and the comedy – his downtrodden demeanour when told he will never be more than a carpenter is downright heart-breaking, but sprinkled throughout are hilariously unexplained choices like bunny-hopping down stairs.

In a sense, Fishing For Chips has created a trojan horse with this performance. We were offered an immersive comedy, and while that is certainly present the drama sneaks out and takes over. For audiences hoping for more active immersion and participation, this might come as a disappointment. But for other audiences, especially fans of Horrible Histories and Ghosts, Burning Down the Horse’s tight direction, superb performances and unique concept are more than enough to entertain. Four stars.