"Without proof, there is hope, right?"
How do you deal with grief? How long is one allowed to grieve? Is it possible to take one's grieving process too far? There are some of the questions that Hummingbird, written and directed by Christopher Neels.
Louise Beresford plays Phoeb, a frantic woman struggling with the loss of her boyfriend, Gavin. She had disappeared without a word after his own disappearance and suddenly returns to the farm of her late father, now owned by her sister, Jude, and her partner, Brian, without warning. She proclaims that Gavin has turned himself into a hummingbird and that she needs to build a pair of wings so that she can join him in flight. Beresford is brilliant in portraying Phoeb's mania and grief, impeccably handling both her highest moments in which she feels like she can fly and the lowest moments of grief that bring her crashing back down to earth.
Brian, played by Amit Shah, begins the show as a man hoping to build a career on making all-natural, banana-flavoured milk, but quickly develops into someone struggling with his grief and the lack of time he has had to let it sit and accept it. He has a passion for making replicas of modern spacecrafts out of old model replicas, which comes into play in Phoeb's attempts to fly. While Brian May not be the most likable of characters, especially if one is drawn more toward Phoeb and Zoe, Shah brings a soft side to the role, allowing Brian to have his quieter moments between his bursts of anger and confusion.
Nancy Zamit is Jude, Brian's partner and Phoeb's sister, a woman who believes that all she and Brian need is a child to make their life on her late father's farm perfect. She attempts to keep the peace between Brian and Phoeb throughout the show while also reflecting on her own loneliness, often talking to Meryl Sheep (a sheep hilariously yet brilliantly portrayed by a laundry basket full of white clothes). Her desire for those around her to simply notice and appreciate her comes through in her dry sense of humour and kindness. There is an exhaustion to Jude, but she still remains loving, trying to keep what's left of her family together.
Neels shines when there are longer scenes between characters having longer conversations, ones that typically begin with humour and end with anger and heartbreak. There is a standout scene in which the three characters are playing Monopoly when an argument breaks out between them, perfectly illustrating the character's unique traits while also effectively moving the plot forward. One conversation towards the end of the play between Brian and Phoeb was absolutely stunning, filled with both powerful moments that left the audience in stunned silence and funny quips that had them laughing seconds later.
In one of only a few scenes of surrealism towards the end of the show, Brian dreams of exploring space, with projections of stars and planets being neatly displayed on the sheets places around the set. In another surreal moment, Jude and Brian sing a song with the chorus of "Home, Sweet Home" which was strangely similar to a song that Zamit had sung in Mischief's The Goes Wrong Show. Beresford makes a hilarious appearance as a baby, adding to the surrealness of the scene as a whole before the show returns to its more realistic moments. Having some of these surreal moments placed more widely apart throughout the show could have been a bit more effective than putting them all together.
Without going into too many spoilers, the ending of the play is sudden and brutal while somehow managing to be ambiguous. The ending could have been a bit more surreal, really leaning into the projections and concepts that had been touched on throughout the show, but leaving the audience questioning what happens next works well for the tone of the show as a whole.
Ultimately, Hummingbird is a funny yet serious work that sometimes attempts to move into the world of surrealism, but works better as a realistic piece. Christopher Neels writes a powerful story of grief while also including a biting sense of humour that lets the audience laugh instead of simply simmering in their sadness.
Hummingbird ran at the VAULT Festival in the Crescent at The Vaults from 28 February to 5 March.
VAULT Festival has been left without a venue for next year. You can contribute to the #SaveVAULT campaign here.
Photo Credit: VAULT Festival
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