Review: Distant Memories of the Near Future (Arcola Theatre)

Review by Eavan Prenter

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Sometimes when I’m accepting all the cookies for the 64th time in a day, or confirming my humanity to a computer via a nonsensical jigsaw of streetlights and motorbikes, I wonder: is this the end times? Ok, not quite, but I do think that capitalism and the endless advance of technology has turned the world into a place that can seem pretty weird. From his new play, Distant Memories of the Near Future, it’s clear that David Head thinks so too, and that it’s only going to get weirder.

Set in a non-specific near future where the world has become even more complicated and commodified than it is now, the play tells five interconnected stories: about a man trying to find love on the apps, a tech entrepreneur searching for the key to hack relationships (or really just one relationship), a dreamer who’s missing her spark, a miner who’s lost her wife, and an AI who’s looking for her voice.

Interspersed between these stories are ads presented through video projections and voice-overs. To say that these were slick is an understatement, and it was no surprise to learn that Head is an award-winning copywriter. I also have to give credit to the brilliant design team including Joseph Peecock, Katya Shipulina and Liz McLeod. Together, these elements combine to form a clever play that neatly knits together the different stories to reach a satisfying conclusion which emphasises the power of connection and the ineffable nature of human relationships and love. I’m a bit of a sucker for a love story, especially an unexpected one, but while these stories are compelling and told with intelligence and humour, something about the play as a whole didn’t quite land for me.

I think the reason was that Head, as the sole performer as well as the writer, plays a narrator-type figure for almost all of the show, telling the audience about the different characters, rather than playing them. He comes across as natural in this role and is clearly very comfortable with the material, adding knowing asides to the audience when things hit close to home or a joke goes down particularly well, but it’s not the most varied performance. At one point he gives a TED talk about one character, which is extremely convincing… maybe too convincing. The TED Talk Presenter tone isn’t much different from the tone of other scenes, and I came to see a play, not a talk.

The ads provided a welcome change of tone, and there was some nice direction from Laura Killeen, particularly the scene featuring a model of an astronaut and some beautiful lighting, but it wasn’t quite enough to lift the production from the feeling of a live audiobook. 

That’s not to say the stories aren’t engaging or that the writing isn’t strong because neither would be true. Head is obviously a very talented writer whose work is well observed, empathetic and wry. However, I’m not sure that this was the best medium for these particular stories. My gut feeling was that this could have been a brilliant novel or radio play, but to make it work as a piece of theatre there needed to be more variety and action. Head has created a cast of interesting, rounded characters and I would have loved to see and hear from them directly – watch them interact, make choices, come to realisations – but we only ever hear about them second-hand.

This is the point where I have to immediately caveat everything I’ve just said, because there is actually one other character that we hear from directly – an AI known initially as Emily, and later as Hope. Voiced by Jessica Munna (and using her likeness), Hope’s scenes were one of the highlights of the show. To be honest with you, when I read that this play was being advertised as a multimedia show featuring an AI performer, I was nervous. The term multimedia gives me nightmarish visions of videos at art exhibitions and AI is such a 2024 buzzword that I worried it would be gimmicky, but I was wrong. The multimedia element is the ads which I really enjoyed, and the AI served the narrative and fitted completely into the world of the play.

There’s a lot to like about Distant Memories of the Near Future – it has ambition and heart and says something genuinely new – but it just wasn’t quite enough to connect with me as a piece of theatre. As lovely as the stories are and as witty as Head’s writing is, there was just too much telling – and not enough showing – to make a great show.

Distant Memories of the Near Future plays at the Arcola Theatre until November 30th

For tickets and information visit https://www.arcolatheatre.com/whats-on/distant-memories-of-the-near-future/

Photos by Carys Hughes