Jennifer Roslyn Wingate is best known as a novel writer, Love or Cold Philosophy and Unused Language amongst her writing credits. Her two-hander play Entropy comes to Edinburgh Fringe and can be seen at Underbelly’s The Dairy Room.
Sam, an arrogant 19 year old turns up unexpectedly at the home of Barbara, clearly they have a past and she is reluctant to let him in. When she eventually does, a thrillingly taught tale unfolds as the step-mother and step-son hash out the proceeding years, bringing to the surface years of hurt and abuse. Entropy covers a range of uncomfortable and disturbing subjects, child abuse and violence at it’s core, but it is done with sensitivity and awareness.
The tension between both characters builds at a good pace, but there are times when the script becomes repetitive and almost frustrating. There’s nothing wrong with leaving much to the audience’s imagination, but there are times where we just don’t get enough clues to be able to connect the dots satisfactorily.
Sam plays games with Barbara, both literally and metaphorically and this acts as a strong device in exploring their past more deeply. The word games and strongly poetic language also work well in bringing the story to life, it just feels like the audience are being kept a little too in the dark.
What’s lacking in the script is more than compensated for by an absolutely breathtaking performance from Lewis Bruniges as Sam. He pulls out all the character’s flaws and lays them bare with unflinching honesty. He is in one moment sweet and childlike, then disturbing, terrifying, and violent in ever decreasing circles of pain and angst.
Entropy is a play with great potential, if the script were to be fleshed out with a little more context and the audience not left to finish the jigsaw themselves, it could be stunning. As it is now, its biggest selling point is Lewis Bruniges and his remarkable performance.
