Machines for Living at Blue Elephant Theatre

Machines for Living at Blue Elephant Theatre

31 May, 2012
by: Naima Khan

This fascinating show may lose its focus but it asks such pertinent questions that I hope there'll be a sequel

In their newest show, Machines for Living, theatre company Let Slip poke a needle deep into the skin of architecture and social housing, extract some of its most interesting concepts and present them in a darkly comedic, highly-stylised mix of movement and visuals at at Blue Elephant Theatre. They introduce us to the pitches and the planning that created the tower-block estates we're surrounded by and they cleverly employ the influence of legendary architect Le Corbusier (Frode Gjerlow), the  don of the high-rise development.  

We go to swanky architect parties and learn about the trends sweeping the world of design. Belgian concrete is apparently very in and at this stage of social housing development, the soon to be banned 'walkways in the sky' are all the rage. But the devising company's initial riveting focus on the fascinating idea of philosophical design loses its way as the play goes on and the community that inhabits the council-managed tower blocks take precedence. This isn't necessarily a bad thing except that in the set-up of the first half, they've sparked a dozen excellent questions about design concepts, social concepts, egos and the industry that aren't explored in enough depth in the second half. Instead, the faults associated with the tower-blocks become more about their maintenance which is linked to design, sure, but feels like it's less to do with the architects than we'd been led to believe.  

Horrified by the small windows necessitated by budget, protagonists Roger (David Ralfe) and Wendy (India Banks), architects and residents of their own creation, find that getting the council to fix the lifts and the heating become their chief concerns. But what about the structure and the mood it creates and the problems it exacerbates? When they return to the initial blue-prints and ideas that have failed them, they do so breifly. And Let Slip again ask more pressing questions. Does uniformity mean equality? How varied does the landscape of social housing need to be? What exactly are commissioners looking for in a pitch? And why were those walkways banned?

Life (and death) in high-rise social housing, as the performers demonstrate in increasingly unsettling and innovative ways, is still horrifying. Regardless of Roger and Wendy's theories of social harmony, old people still die alone undiscovered for weeks and families are squeezed into inadequate accommodation. This Community, ingeniously embodied in this production by Nicole Pschetz is at first a fickle, shallow being according to LeCorbusier, to be distracted. She is then a drunk, stumbling, aimless entity to be managed and saved from herself. The company present her in the eyes of the architects, the media and the audience in a tall order they deliver flawlessly. 

But they also make me want to know much more than they give me. Despite its short one hour running time, this production could afford to be both messier and slicker in equal parts. The already spellbinding monochrome of this cleverly designed show (design by Christina Hardinge) could move faster, be tighter and interrogate this brilliant concept with more vigour and focus and I'd definitely return for a second visit. 


Machines For Living runs at Blue Elephant Theatre until 16th June


Image: India Banks, Nicole Pschetz, Frode Gjerlow and David Ralfe by Christina Hardinge.


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Naima Khan