A magnificent blend of sci-fi, sexual politics, racial tension, religion, romance and pretty much everything else along the way.
It’s an ambitious move combining sci-fi, sexual politics, racial tension, religion, time travel, romance into a coherent play, but somehow 'The Motion Of Light In Water' manages to pull it off. Though it forces the use of a narrator to explain what’s going on more than you’d like, the stylish way the time and location of the current scene was displayed was effective enough to remain in the moment. The exploration of language, interpretation and the boundaries of realism stays faithful to the style Samuel R. Delany was known for.
Though sharing its name with Delany’s game-changing autobiography, the play combines elements of this with Delany’s breakthrough book 'Babel-17'. It gives an insight into his life before his was an acclaimed author and draws parallels between the goings on of his life and the plot of the book.
The play begins with Delaney and Marilyn Hacker travelling on a bus to Michigan, a state where they can legally wed as an interracial couple. While the 1960s era of the play explores the meaning of an open marriage, the life of a gay man in this era and the troubled inspirations of the writing process, we are then transported to 2114 where the outfits are tight and the world has found a new set of standards to judge each other by. Sexuality lies at the heart of both stories particularly the emotional difficulties that come from the proportional sharing of self in a threesome.
The cast put in an incredible performance, managing to meet the great expectations of director Marcel Dorney’s vision. Among the fantastic imagery, the human interactions between characters, give a humanist appeal to the play that could have otherwise left it cold and detached. As different cast members slip between different roles in different eras, there’s no confusion as to who you’re supposedly watching, which is critical with a play that jumps around so thick and fast.
It’s a play of multiple facets that can at times be confusing, but is ultimately a rewarding insight into two very interesting people and the hardships they faced outside of their control. Sci-fi is a genre often dismissed as adolescent distraction, yet Delany’s work handled heavyweight topics in a way that still retained their accessibility, drawing real-life comparisons in a less explicit way than that of this play. It skilfully manages to avoid the risk of alienating its audience with such a potentially niche subject matter and for that, should be applauded. All in all, a resounding success.
'The Motion Of Light In Water' performs La Boite's Indie Season until 21 November.
