EDINBURGH 2023: Review: THE FISH BOWL, Summerhall

Dementia is a scary prospect. The incurable fate of many, it’s inevitable and painful for the patient and their family. Featuring interviews with professionals in the field of aged care and real-life stories, The Fish Bowl is a compassionate piece of theatre. A sturdy script that lightly involves the audience backs the aim of the production and lifts Matthew Barker and Heidi Steel’s performances.

Co-created by Barker and director Steph Daughtry, it gives an honest, sensitive portrayal of elderly vulnerability. Its incessant, bitter humour also makes it a tragically funny play.

Nursing home brawls reveal that everyone is an animal in the fishbowl. While this would be perceived as a negative in most contexts, Barker and Daughtry establish it as a neutral description of what goes on inside the facility. People are stripped of their memories and reduced to their primal instincts. The collection of heartbreaking characters could easily be inspired by someone’s nan or aunt, their touching moments of clarity grounding the plot and tug at the heartstrings.

The story puts life in perspective. It raises awareness and pushes for change in a not-yet-fully explored area of science. It’s also a celebration of nurses and the restless, relentless empathy they have. While perhaps demoralising in some parts, the project says it like it is and pulls no punches.

The Fish Bowl runs at Summerhall on the following dates:  7-13, 15-20, 22-27 August.

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