Hitchhiker
by Jessy Roberts
“I’ve finally come to the conclusion that everything is totally random.”
Dougie has dropped out of uni halfway through his third year. Everyone thinks this means he’s wasted time, and he should just complete the final six months. But time is the most, and least, abundant thing in the whole universe, right? So what’s the best way to spend it?
Intent on doing something with his life, Dougie starts making a Sci-Fi Radio show from his bedroom, but keeps being interrupted by his little brother.
Hitchhiker is a brand new comedy about running away, perspective, and The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.
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21st & 22nd July 2021
The Rondo Theatre, Bath
60 mins
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Writer and Director: Jessy Roberts
Stage Management: Elspeth Goodman (operator) and Ellie Condon
Lighting Design: Elspeth Goodman and Luke Emmett
Sound Design: Hannah Bracegirdle
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Dougie: Joe Edgar
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To Be Announced
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“As science fiction narratives go, Douglas Adams’ The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy franchise is perhaps one of the most brilliantly weird of the lot. With all its Babel fish, Vogan poetry and improbability drives, I don’t think anyone would quite expect it to be a mirror to everyday human experience, but Teastain Theatre accomplishes exactly this with their new show.
The balance of humour and pain are handled with utter precision within the script, and Welch’s easy naturalism fits within the framework of this beautiful, sort-of love letter to Douglas Adams’ work. Adams had a way of turning the ordinary into the extraordinary and the extraordinary into the ordinary, and Roberts’ script perfectly captures this essence. The reveals of Dougie’s past are handled with expert care, pealing back the layers of what initially appears to be a callous lack of compassion to in fact be the residual trauma of a difficult adolescence. Dougie isn’t a wholly likeable character, but in the post-Fleabag theatre world, it’s interesting to see these darker shades of emotional turmoil expressed by a young man who does eventually try to redeem himself… The nihilistic optimism of Generation Z is beautifully and candidly explored in this piece. While the script does not forgive Dougie for his mistakes, there is an uplifting sense of hope… and we are left to consider that life is not always about clear beginnings, middles and ends, but rather, it is a continuum for learning, growth and change.”
☆☆☆☆ 1/2 Alexandra Ricou
