Review ‘EXXY’: “Pungent personal account provokes thought but forgets to tell a story”

Following the success of his latest show, performer and theatremaker Dan Daw returns to the stage with this new intimate piece, exploring both his and others’ struggles as LGBT+ and disabled people. Guillermo Nazara shares his views on the show to let us know if its raw social comment leads to a palatable theatrical creation. 

Life is hard. There is no way around it. It is how we approach that reality that makes the difference. We can either be victims or the leaders of our paths. And there’s no question about which role a gay actor with cerebral palsy takes, opening up about his personal experiences and vulnerabilities every night in front of a few hundred people.

I must confess that, despite its recent popularity, I had never heard of The Dan Daw Show — nor was I aware of who the performer was. An old acquaintance happened to sit next to me during last week’s press night. All he could say is that he’d been flabbergasted — he might not have used that word, but I like to bring it up on a daley basis.

With that in mind, I was enticed, if not hooked. His last iteration, as I had been told, explored the struggles of a disabled person’s sex life, which is impaired by the sorrow that society automatically casts on him. It was an arresting premise to say the least — and I was eager to see what he had come up with in a piece that would still cover LGBT and disability issues while introducing the subject of impostor syndrome.

From a staging perspective, it was a fulfilled promise. EXXY is a visually captivating production that extracts beauty from its raw approach. A reflective deck boxed in a fluorescent border delineates the space. Inside, some scattered plants and folding chairs concoct the set, complemented by a decaying backdrop made of oxidized warehouse panels. A massive picture frame featuring the show’s title hangs in the front as viewers flock in — its content soon to be torn apart by ping-pong balls as the rendition starts.

There is something powerful about the brutalist take on the material, which extends to the portrayals and the writing of the piece itself. Everything remains in a primary state. Nothing is overdone or overworked. All elements are conceptual — and as such, it’s up to the viewer to connect the dots and discover further meaning.

We are offered some tools in that effort — the cast exposes their trials and tribulations through stark speeches devoid of any embellishment. Simple quotes convey the most heavy-loaded facts, underpinned by the sincerity of their performances — these are not actors playing other characters, but a group of artists presenting themselves as they are. It is a haunting watch brimming with impact and endurance. And in that regard, there’s very little to critique and much more to grasp.

This exceedingly abstract style serves as the show’s cornerstone, but it’s also its most pronounced fissure. All in all, it’s a difficult piece to follow, and beyond those exceptional strokes of brilliance, the whole thing comes across as a blank canvas with nothing more than a few lines sketched around.

There is strength behind the intention, but enough deftness in its execution. There’s hardly a narrative to follow. And even if that was the purpose, it’s not put together in the most inspired manner. Consequently, its potential remains unlocked — pulsating throughout those rare moments of excellence, but obscured by an overwhelming sense of dullness that, in the end, compromises all previous achievements.

Gathering a compelling array of themes while serving as a loudspeaker for several ostracized voices, EXXY is built on a solid concept. However, its hazy delivery and vaporous development prevent it from standing beyond a rough draft, where ideas are brainstormed but not sufficiently exploited. It would be unfair to call this piece an impostor of a show. Yet, that allegedly main topic is nowhere to be found.

EXXY is currently on tour and will play at Take Me Somewhere (15 October), Transform (22-23 October), and the Attenborough Centre for the Creative Arts (6-7 November). Tickets are available on the following link.

By Guillermo Nazara