Paper Swans Review - ON IN LONDON

In a closed park at night, a security guard, Peter, on his patrol finds a young woman, Anna, dressed in a ballet dress sitting on the bench making paper swans. As he tries to find out what she is doing and why, he locks them in a continuous never-ending loop; trapped as they encounter each other over and over again. Each time they meet, there is a slight change in the situation and things progress, albeit at their own, fragmented pace.

Written and performed by Vyte Garriga, it is a one act play lasting 60 minutes. It draws on absurdist theatre and visual symbolism as well as Vyte’s personal experience as a woman from a post-Soviet country (Lithuania) coming to the UK. As a writer, Vyte is interested in myths, Surrealism, dream logic, experimenting with storytelling forms.

The poster says ‘does everything have to have a reason?’ and that’s obviously part of absurdist theatre with repetition and unclear meanings. We did leave wondering whether the scenarios were real or imagined, the purpose of the paper swans and the character’s purpose. But this wondering is part of this genre and had as chatting as we left the theatre.

Does the guard represent rules, structure, normalcy whilst Anna represents innocence, freedom and creativity? This is certainly echoed in the costumes Peter and Anna in a white ballet style outfit complete with ballet flats. Ballerinas and swans are usually associated with beauty and grace. Is it a commentary on how these might not be appreciated by everyone? Is it about how rituals can have a negative impact on our lives? Is it about the pointlessness of life?

Garriga and actor Daniel Chrisostomou perform this brilliantly. Chrisostomou’s guard’s movements are robotic at first, while Garriga’s are more free flowing, again raising the question of representing authority and creative expression. Director Simon Gleave makes full use of the stage, they are mesmerising as they dance. We also liked the use of opposites in movement such as a scene towards the end where they both lean back on the bench at separate times before coming together. There’s influence of clowning techniques throughout the production which does lead to some laugh out loud moments.

The performance occurs on the top floor studio at Soho theatre, which gives a more intimate feel. We were in the back row and couldn’t see some ground movements, though these didn’t last too long. This meant we couldn’t see the ground covered in white swans. Shout-out to the lighting designer who transformed the calm blue skies to heightened tension with red atmospheric lighting heightened the tension. We also enjoyed the music, which is an original score by renowned English folk musician Nick Hart drawing on traditional Lithuanian music.