Circles review, Tricycle Theatre

Circles is an interesting look at the circularity of dysfunction and the effect of environmental factors on genetic imperatives, through the outcomes of three generations of women from the same family who choose, and defer to, violent men.

Angela's mother escaped after her husband battered her so badly one of her legs is permanently shorter than the other. She took Angela with her, but there is little love between these damaged women and even less respect as Angela has become a disappointment, running off with a brute of her own. When she turns up on her mother's doorstep with her face smashed, no explanation for the damage is necessary. But.. unlike her solitary mother, Angela didn't take her child. Where is Demi?

We know where Demi is, because we've already met her. She's knowing and she's cute and she's tough as nails, and she's slowly seducing a loud-mouthed young idiot on the bus. Has Demi escaped the cycle that has led her grandmother to give up on men and her damaged mother to seek solace where she can, or is she just a newer version of an old stereotype?  Alas, we soon discover that patterns are hard to shake off. While Demi's body is unscathed, her mind is already violated, her every action dictated by the teenage gang lords who have her in their clutches. 

In conclusion: The cast of four - Sarah Manners, Janice McKenzie, Toyin Omari-Kinch and Danusia Samal - is terrific, and Rachel De-lahay has created a piece that shows clearly how we become what we know. What Circles lacks is any kind of analysis, so that at the end, there is nothing to take away from Circles, beyond what is already well documented. 

References

Tricycle Theatre, Tickets 

Tricycle Theatre, 269 Kilburn high Road, London NW6 7JR.  Run ends 14 June.