Anna Hadley reviews Trashed at the Underbelly, Edinburgh

Trashed is a dark, tragic show that haunts the Fringe and stays with its audiences. Written by Sascha Moore and performed by David William Bryan, the play is based on one man’s experience of the loss of a child, the breakdown of his marriage, and the societal disenfranchisement he experiences as a working-class man.

Yet, despite the tragic storyline of this one-man show, it is truly an entertaining audience experience. If you sit in the front row it is likely you will be offered a can of cider, whilst Bryan’s protagonist Keith is violent but charismatic, he roars at the audience and holds impressive but fearful eye contact. The fourth wall is broken, but it works with the intimate setting of the stage, as Bryan talks to us from his junkyard couch whilst cracking open cider after cider.

Nevertheless, whilst Bryan offers an explosive, and indeed believable performance, the show is let down by its less than believable storyline of tempestuous volatility. It is necessary to mention voyeurism when approaching the storyline of a working-class character. Whilst Bryan’s portrayal is sympathetic, and highlights the economic inequality within Britain that has made the protagonist’s life so tragic, the explosive violence of his character is a working-class trope that has been done before, and feels outdated.

Trashed plays at Underbelly, Cowgate until August 27th.