EDINBURGH 2024: Review: BIRDWATCHING, TheSpace @ Venue45

In Birdwatching, Black Bright Theatre's latest production, school friends Amelia, Poppy, and Lauren are heading into the woods for a wild camping trip.

From the outset, it's clear that they are poorly prepared. They're already a tent down, and someone left the alcohol on the train. But still, they've found a good enough spot to call 'home' for the night. Only, pretty soon, they begin to question whether the sounds they can hear around them are just birds or something much more sinister.

As the night progresses, danger seems to linger around their makeshift campsite. It works its way through the air, impacting each girl in turn. Lauren (Ellen Trevaskiss), perhaps the most outwardly vulnerable of the girls, is the first to succumb to the whispers, feeling almost instantly that something is wrong. Amelia (Mimi Millmore), perhaps too preoccupied with taking photographs, is less concerned, and Poppy (Madeline Farnhill) is too practical for that. She's the organiser of the event, having brought 'half of the Mountain Warehouse' in her backpack. 

However, things take a turn for the worse when Poppy decides to tell a ghost story.

Effortlessly demonstrating the apt way in which friendships can leave you feeling safe one minute and incredibly exposed the next, Birdwatching offers a unique and captivating take on folk horror. Written by performer Madeline Farnhill and directed by Chantelle Walker, Birdwatching is deliciously tense and creates the kind of atmosphere that has audience members turning around in their seats - cautious of what they might find as they do so.

In this production, the woods is a character in its own right: at times, it's the thing we're most fearful of. It is brought to life through simple yet effective staging and an eerie soundscape.

While the performers have a really great script to work with, each of the trio gives a strong performance. Millmore brings much-needed levity in her comedic portrayal of Amelia while also being given a chance to show some real depth later in the play. Farnhill is equally skilful in her portrayal of Poppy, a character whose layers are peeled back a little slower than the other characters. Trevakiss earns the audience's favour near-instantly in an incredibly vulnerable and tender portrayal of Lauren, who never quite feels like she fits in with her friends.

Some may argue that there's nothing scarier than being in the woods at night. However, this is a notion that Birdwatching turns on its head, instead arguing that there's nothing scarier than being a teenage girl. After all, amid mounting tensions and suspicions, the friends turn on each other. In fear of being watched, they begin to look at each other a little closer, too.

And what is scarier than someone seeing you exactly as you are?

Horror is difficult to bring to the stage, but Birdwatching does it effortlessly. It is a must-see show at this year's Fringe.

Birdwatching is at TheSpace @ Venue45 until August 24.

Photo Credit:  Ai Narapol

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