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Edmonton Journal

Fringe Review: Bomb a crisp, polished drama

Article content Stage 4, Walterdale Theatre, 10322 83 Ave. Article content This dark, absurdist comedy by Ukrainian playwright Natalia Blok is a clean, crisp production with strong and supple performances by its four characters. The story is, by turns, funny and frightening and requires some knowledge of, and interest in, the plight of Ukraine in the last 30 years. Article content At the centre is Dasha (the energetically comical Mariya Khomutova), an activist with PTSD and an anxiety disorder. Fighting for various social justice causes has left her feeling like a ticking time bomb that just might go off at any time. When her devoted husband (a cheerfully manic Geoffrey Simon Brown) suggests a trip to a psychiatrist, Dasha finds herself in the grip of a practitioner (James MacDonald, compellingly wacky) who mixes heliotropic breathwork with the study of auras. His diagnosis? Dasha actually does have a bomb in her belly, one that could change history if she chooses to pull the pin. Article content Article content Helmed by one of the rising stars of directing in Canada, Edmonton's own Lianna Makuch (fresh off a Stratford gig), Bomb moves with speed and precision and the kind of professional polish that's not necessarily common at Fringe shows. Designer Stephanie Bahniuk's spare set, with its overhead projector and vintage hospital room dividers, channels a Soviet-style cinderblock mentality. It's a very confusing place to be, and that's just the point. Article content Article content