11 @ Paradise in Augustines

11 is a hit and miss collage of short pieces on the theme of war which comes to brilliant life whenever the ensemble sings in harmony but sometimes fades into unmoving platitude in the linking material between skits.

The subtle use of visuals cast by overhead projector onto a screen at the back of the stage rather merges into the furniture of the piece for the main part but seems to compliment the drama on a more subliminal level. Highlights included the songs “Here in Buckingham Palace,” “Song of the Princesses,” and “Propaganda” which included a clever canon.

There were some animated moments of drama, such as the scenes where the cast took on roles of curious children playing in Glasgow during the second world war and the performance of David Mutch as Lukas, an SS Officer suffering pangs of conscience.

Perhaps there is not quite enough grim material or commentary on the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan to build up to the contemporary anti-war sentiment that the piece ends upon, "I have a dream but I'm not as eloquent as Martin Luther King so I stay silent and the world stays the same."