Review: HISTORY OF PAPER, Tron Theatre

A pizza express menu. A birthday card. A birth certificate. A note. A shopping receipt. In a world so overtaken by technology, this play beautifully uncovers the quiet power of paper, revealing how much of our lives—birthdays, milestones, even dinner plans—are still shaped by what’s printed on single sheets.

The musical, History of Paper, follows an everyday romance sparked between a woman (Emma Mullen) and a man (Christopher Jordan-Marshall) in Glasgow. The narrative documents their journey through paper - the performers exhibit excellent chemistry and are extremely likeable. Mullen in particular lends the character a soft, relaxed ease that makes everybody want to be her friend.

The first half of the piece is beautiful - Leila Kalbassi's minimal-yet-effective set design charmingly compliments the cleverly written narrative. Musical director Gavin Whitworth provides lovely live music and even makes an appearance as an in-limbo character. The place where the piece fell a bit flat for me was it's tragic plot twist in the second half (no spoilers!). It felt like I was being forced to be sad, distracting me from the fascinating focus on paper charting our lives. The twist also felt reminiscent of a well-known movie I've seen before (if I give away the movie, I'll give away the twist!).

I’d still highly recommend the show for its unique focus, phenomenal acting, and stunning design, but I was left wishing the ending had delivered a bit more.

History of Paper was at the Tron Theatre until 14 September.

Photo credit: Tommy Ga-Ken Wan