If I could get away with writing a review that said Richard Fry is a genial genius, and you should go and see anything and everything he does because he is a genius and very genial, I would.

Of course, that’s not possible. So clearly – because I take my job as a reviewer very seriously – I will have to tell you why you should – nay, must! – go and see his latest show The Ballad of The Unbeatable Hearts.

Firstly, some background. I first saw (and met) Richard Fry at last year’s Fringe, when he performed in Smiler (which he also wrote), and which made me cry. But in a good way. Richard was also very genial and humble off stage, and made himself available to mingle with Fringe folk, seeing other shows and getting in amongst it. He is also quite lovely on Twitter, and will generally tweet back if you @mention him (although he’s not following me back yet…*shakes fist*! I’m @dileeshus nudge nudge, hint hint if you are reading this review, Richard!).

So, to say that I was thrilled to be seeing – and reviewing! – Richard’s new show would be an understatement. And he did not disappoint (and I was just as thrilled that he recognised me from last year).

I love intimate theatre. And Higher Ground, as a venue, is brilliant for that. While I didn’t quite make the front row (I was in the second), I was only around 2 metres away from the stage. And the stage isn’t so much of a stage as an elevated area. One step and you are there. The beauty of being so close is that you can see the emotions of the actor as he or she performs. It is honest theatre, that’s for sure. (Also, the actors themselves tend to hang out there between shows. Last night, I got to thank the actors of Outland for their performance – if you read my review, you’ll know why that’s important. But I digress.)

Richard’s sets are always minimalist and quite simple, which I love. The props don’t get in the way of the story. Instead they support the narrative, like a chair, a book, a snippet of music (I know music’s not a prop, but it fits nicely here!). There are no elaborate costumes, nothing to distract from the story that is unfolding for the audience. Everything is carefully though out, and nothing is there unless it has a purpose. Unless it is supposed to be.

Unbeatable Hearts is told mostly in rhyme. To my mind, this is a clever narrative technique because Richard’s subject matter is dark. Very dark. Rhyming – which seems child-like and innocent on face value – makes the subject matter no less confronting, but much more accessible. Rhyming draws the audience in by cloaking the story in the familiar and safe, allowing the narrative to flow and the characters to develop. Before you know it, Bam! You’re hooked.

This play has a number of main characters, and each one performed beautifully by Richard. From the nurse, who gave the main character the telling off of a life-time, to the parents who had lost their children to suicide, each one added another dimension, another layer to the story. Through them, we are forced to confront tough issues.

Oh, you see I’ve mentioned suicide? I’m glad, because I was wondering how I was going to bring that up, given it’s generally a taboo subject. The play is about suicide, and how lost gay souls could – if given the chance and not forced to make life and death decisions because they have no tribe and no sense of belonging – contribute to helping make the world a better place. The play is about the suicide of young, gay teens, and why we need every single one of them. It’s also about how they can be saved.

Unbeatable Hearts is an emotional ride, no doubt about it. I was laughing one minute, in raptures the next, than really angry, then moved to tears. In Richard’s deft hands, I was putty. Despite what I said earlier, this review cannot do justice to the depth, honesty, pain and passion of The Ballad of The Unbeatable Hearts. I am not that skilled a writer. You simply must go and see it for yourself.  But you must be prepared to be confronted and be challenged. You must be prepared to walk away knowing that you, personally, have a responsibility to make a difference. You cannot walk away from the play without being fundamentally affected.

Suffice it to say, Richard made me cry again. And that’s a good thing.

Last words

For those of you who have seen the play, here is a link to Unbeatable Hearts’ Facebook Page.

Forget “save the cheerleader, save the world”. Much better to save a young gay person, and make the world a place where “gay does not mean shit”.