'ECHO' review – this boldly experimental play is a thoughtful meditation on family, conflict and hope

Read our review of Nassim Soleimanpour's drama ECHO, now in performances at the Royal Court to 27 July.

Featuring in this year’s LIFT Festival, ECHO (Every Cold-Hearted Oxygen) is Iranian theatremaker Nassim Soleimanpour’s latest experimental play. It challenges well-known performers to come to the stage without any knowledge of what they are about to perform.

Across a three-week run, the production will feature acting talent such as Monica Dolan, Jessica Gunning and Toby Jones. The script and an earpiece are the actors’ guides, as they are led through the journey of the playwright’s story, seemingly connected live to his flat in Berlin. Soleimanpour himself appears throughout on screen: bouncy, thoughtful and very likeable.

On press night Adrian Lester undertook this voyage into the unknown. A declaration is made that he has no idea what is to come, nor has he done any research to try and find out. The result is a demonstration of Lester’s inherent talent; he is calm, controlled, fluent and coherent throughout.

His mellifluous voice gives a vividness to the writer’s words; the spontaneity and slight jeopardy are both palpable, but Lester also acts as though he has rehearsed the performance many times. He lends an almost meditative quality to the production, in spite of its obvious challenges. It would be fascinating to see how other performers interact with the material.

Now living in Berlin, Soleimanpour was unable to leave his native Iran for many years as a conscientious objector, refusing to complete the country’s mandatory national service. He takes the actor through the story of his departure from Iran, leaving his family behind, touching on the political danger faced by ordinary people, the immigrant experience, and what home really means.

Through shifting timelines, locations and flashbacks, the boundary between who is the actor and who is the playwright is often blurred. It is a very meta and immersive theatrical experience.

ECHO is an ode to memory, home, time, family, conflict, friendship, love and hope. Part play, part conversation, part poetry reading – with some illusion and metaphysical theatre thrown in. There are projections, livestreams and camera trickery. It’s a lot to fit into 80 minutes and sometimes feels a little overwhelming. Perhaps this is the point, as it is certainly overwhelming what Soleimanpour has lived through.

In contrast with the recent screen-heavy adaptation of Maggie Nelson’s Bluets, ECHO is set in a simple replica of Soleimanpour’s study, though also featuring several huge screens projecting a mixture of live and pre-recorded footage.

Despite the current ubiquity of screens on stage, image designer Derek Richards creates some beautiful moments with blowing leaves and swirling constellations. The actor moves in and around the screens, almost becoming part of the projections.

The Royal Court’s new Artistic Director David Byrne said that he wanted “to champion brave writers that push us forward”. ECHO certainly fulfils that admirable desire.

ECHO is at the Royal Court through 27 July. Book ECHO tickets on London Theatre.

Photo credit: ECHO (Photos by Manuel Harlan)