LIFE RECORDS 2: SIDE B by Rhiannon Archer (Beefman Jones). At the Factory Studio. July 7 at 9 pm, July 8 at 3:45 pm, July 10 at 5:15 pm, July 12 at 2 pm, July 14 at 11:15 pm, July 16 at 12:15 pm. See listing. Rating: NN
Stand-up Rhiannon Archer follows up her hit 2015 Fringe play Life Records with another series of tales about how certain songs are associated with key episodes in her life. But this time the stories dont feel as well shaped or as heartfelt.
Archers tales arent organized in any chronological, or even logical, way, giving the audience a sense of dislocation. A story about Archer being pregnant comes before one about being bullied as a child. And then theres a tale about her becoming a cleaning lady, and a protracted story about dating.
The pregnancy episode is the most memorable, probably because the stakes are high (Archer reveals she has a bleeding disorder so couldnt use a midwife), and Phil Luzis direction here gives us a sense of place. But this show lacks the intimacy, the marvellous character voices and the honest details that made the first show so vivid.
Archer seems stiff onstage, and theres a smugness and sameness to her delivery that, while it makes her stand-up confident, deflates the drama in a show. Worse, the songs except for the final one never feel fully integrated into the stories.
