It’s just an ordinary day in the ordinary life of an ordinary family. As the alarm clock flicks over to 7:37 am, a day begins for an average teenager. After wolfing down a rushed breakfast, they join the hustle and bustle of the outside world. However, all it takes for one random event to completely flip a family’s life on its head. Lives are changed forever following a devastating catastrophe.
random by debbie tucker green and directed by Gbolahan Obisesan is a brilliant one-woman show that focuses on the grief and bewilderment of a family tragedy. The demanding role was played by Kiza Deen (Silent Witness and Hollyoaks) and she plays the role of a multitude of poignant characters with such skill and conviction.
Throughout the performance, Kiza portrayed the roles of four different character and she did so brilliantly. She takes the role of a teenage boy, a mother, a father and a younger teenage sister. Each character had their own way of walking, talking, emotions and personality traits that proved how brilliant Kiza’s portrayal truly was.
random focuses on a family whose son ends up being a victim of knife crime and the show deals with how the family copes with the realisation of his death. But it’s not all sad, there are some very funny moments in the show and some excellent characterisation that feels incredibly relatable.
I thought the play was excellent and Kiza Deen blew me away with her excellent portrayal of a family of four. Each character unique but unified. The play really does tug on your heartstrings and you find yourself really warming to the daughter throughout the performance. To watch her grief differ from her mother and father’s grief was really interesting to watch.
For one actor to command the stage for 45 minutes with just dialogue, no props and some excellent character changes is a really tough challenge but Kiza did it with ease.
