Vancouver Fringe Festival review: Themes of community and identity struggle to emerge in Escape Artists II

Fanta Sesay as Lisha In Escape Artists II

As we perch on the fire escape that serves the parking lot across from the Lafarge cement plant, we watch Liz and Dave anticipate the end of the world. Diffidently, they move towards a personal connection, but we don’t know enough about them to care. In a later scene that takes place higher up the fire escape, Gwen and Lisha have apparently survived the apocalypse, but their memories are fragile. Playwright Martin Gover has them free associate, often referring to the media that, it seems, helped to destroy civilization: “I”¦I/iPod.” Themes of community and identity struggle to emerge. A story would have helped to release them.

On the fire escape on September 13 (5:15 p.m.), 14 (5:15 p.m.), 15 (6:15 p.m.), 16 (6:15) 17 (6:15 p.m.), 18 (1, 3, and 5 p.m.), and 19 (noon, 2, 4, and 6 p.m.)