Story of a Rabbit
Story of a Rabbit fills its viewers with a warmth and optimism that is rare at a festival that houses more than its fair share of disillusioned comedians and overbearing thespians
Many plays end in death: Hugh Hughes' begins with it. As the audience walks into the old converted church at the back of the Pleasance Courtyard, it's much like walking into a funeral parlour, as Hughes stands at the entrance, shaking people's hands like a man in mourning, while the word "DEATH" is ominously projected onto the dark stage.
But Story of a Rabbit is far from a tale filled with doom and gloom: it's a genuinely humourous, affecting multimedia exploration of life, death and memory. In 1995, Hughes is asked to look after his neighbour's rabbit while her family is on holiday and a series of unfortunate events unfold. He connects this seminal event in his life to another: the death of his father in 2001, and glides back and forth between the two years with effortless dramatic ability.
The play - if you can call this wonderfully scatterbrained monologue such a thing - is moulded the in same style as Hughes' 2006 offering, Floating, one of the major successes of last year's Fringe - but his whimsical formula is far from tiring. Forget deconstructing the fourth wall: Hughes breaks through it, serving a few lucky audience members cups of tea and constantly being distracted by spectators that catch his eye. This endearingly theatrical Welshman from Anglesea uses music, video and images to convey the progress of his tangled plot, but these low-tech additions never get in the way of his awkwardly affable nature and touching narrative.
This isn't quite a one-man show: Hughes is also accompanied by the lovely Aled, a shy, multi-talented musician and technician, who enhances his friend's tale with atmospheric lighting and sweet guitar melodies. Through their combined effort, Story of a Rabbit fills its viewers with a warmth and optimism that is rare at a festival that houses more than its fair share of disillusioned comedians and overbearing thespians, delivering a performance that is memorable as much for its protagonist's overwhelming personal charm as its status as an uncommonly brilliant piece of theatre.