Review: The Unreturning

by Daniel Hill

Frantic Assembly’s new piece, The Unreturning, explores the struggles that men returning from war often face. Written by Anna Jordan, this cast of four have all been through the company’s program Ignition which trains young men in the Frantic style and as actors. By using graduates of this programme, Frantic are able to show the power of their form as well as showing the world their contribution to evolving theatre. The production is directed by Neil Bettles.

The struggle of returning home is portrayed through the eyes of three men, all returning to England from a different time period. At the start of the play 1918, 2013 and 2026 are projected onto the shipping container which is part of the set, establishing the wars that the men have returned home from. Although this seemed somewhat confusing when we, the audience, were introduced to each young man, over the course of the play Frantic were able to allow the three stories to work together yet also appear separate. The multi-rolling employed worked really well and allowed for some truly intimate moments. By employing this technique, it almost seemed as if the four actors were experiencing each other’s hardships. We were given an insight into both the sheer differences and close similarities of these men; the need to return Home was seen throughout. The typical Frantic Assembly physical theatre was included through some of the most troubling moments of the piece and even though some of these moments seemed slightly ‘GCSE Frantic Assembly,’ they were used effectively and came across very powerfully.

The set itself was very interesting. The main object of attraction was the large shipping container at the centre of the stage which was rotated by the actors themselves. Although it occasionally felt slightly needless, it was used in very creative ways in order to produce the illusion of a journey, separate but unite the war tales and introduce further creativity within the piece. One of the memorable moments was the journey taken by Nat as the container was turned by the other actors as we gained snapshots within this long and painful journey. The shipping container also allowed for another part of his journey to take part over water. Something appeared to be quite subtle in this part of the piece and the revolving shipping container allowed this to come across slightly more vividly.

The cast were four, very strong actors who worked together in an impressive way. Although they were also brilliant, I thought that Jared Garfield and Joe Layton were particularly strong. This was mainly due to the writing of their parts of George (1918) and Frankie (2013) respectively which meant that they had slightly more to play with. The emotional state of both of these roles were both heartbreaking and showed how they had almost been left by society due to their recovery from the wars. Garfield created a real change in his role of George including the intimacy within the space combined with a raw immediacy as he told his story. Layton was also very powerful in the role of Frankie as he tried to overcome the mistakes he had made, something which did not seem easy. Jonnie Riordan was also very strong. Although his role as Nat was not quite as hard hitting as the previous two mentioned, there were a number of memorable moments and his ensemble roles, including the charity worker, gave him the ability to showcase his strengths. Kieton Saunders-Browne, in his stage debut, was admirable too. His role as part of the chorus was very key and he brought a sense of conclusion to the piece in his role. All four actors of the company were able to add something to this brilliant piece.

The Unreturning begs the question as to whether we appreciate and support veterans enough. By working the three ages together there is a sense that we are almost less thankful to people who fight to protect us and have gone through unthinkable things. We get clear examples of these people making mistakes in high-pressure situations. Isn’t this just human nature? Frantic Assembly highlights this and suggests it is worth giving the people who risked their lives support and credit before looking further afield in necessary in the modern society we live in.

Once again, Frantic have put together a brilliant piece of theatre that incorporates a number of moments which can be pinpointed within their style. Hard Hitting, emotional, moving, overwhelming and eye-opening are five of the words I can use to describe this play but there are so many words which could enhance this. An amazing play from a wonderful theatre company. I would highly recommend this production when it stops off at the Minerva Theatre, Chichester in 2019.