Funny

Taking place in an intimate venue on Holyrood Road, Funny explores the use of humour as a weapon of the state. The idea of humour being used to break the determination of terrorists under interrogation makes for a truly original and haunting image. Is the human reaction to humour such a strong impulse it can break any barrier?

This strange, but very personal piece reaches the audience on different levels. Whether you feel strongly about Britain’s engagement in conflict areas, or you are interested in the part humour plays in human nature, chances are you will find this play fascinating. In addition to a well-written script it boasts convincing performances portraying the vulnerability that defines the characters. Funny investigates the human condition by the merging of two very opposite themes, comedy and torture, (we might as well talk about good versus evil), and what happens when one is used to aid the other.

This play leaves the audience with something of a moral dilemma. Surely the use of humour would be a better interrogation method than psychological and physical terror. At the same time though, there is something so dirty about torture and, in opposition, so innocent about comedy that the whole idea feels slightly perverse. Charting unknown territory and reaffirming the age-old adage that only the imagination can limit the number of available methods of torture, Funny is a captivating play entirely in its own right. But it is no laughing matter.