Edinburgh Fringe 2010: Review, Joe Bone’s BANE, GRV1 Five Pound Fringe

There is only one play you need to see at Fringe 2009 and that is Bane!  There has never been such a well written and inspiringly acted play put on by one man with such an understanding and respect for film noir.  This is THE PLAY you have to see, if you miss this i can tell you now you will regret it for the rest of your life.

The play starts out like no other, a guy comes onto the stage and starts playing guitar (Ben Roe) - very strong elements of Ali Farke Toure and Ry Cooder, the pace is meaningful and hard, it tells you that bad things are coming.  Off stage where here a characters phone call and then out man comes onto stage Bane (writer & actor Joe Bone) ‘a hired hand who gets the job done’.  There is no words that can express Joe’s performance he is on stage alone playing over what seems like 20 or 30 characters.  His ability to morph into these different characters is the corner stone of the performance and so believable.

Joe has written something here that is beyond a unique effort and the skill to which he is able to perform will leave you speechless.  Bane is more than a parody of film noir, it is a re-envisioning of what film noir is and can be in contemporary theatre.  Here Joe uses Ben’s gently strokes of the guitar to give you the feeling of the modern film noir and each time Ben plays you are given the space and pace of No Country for Old Men.  There are other film references that are used with ease and are meant to be but nothing takes away from the originality of what ‘Bane’ is.

The Story

We catch Bane as he is going about his daily routine simply trying to get the job done and the main aspect of the play revolves around him trying to kill Mendoza and then realising he has a hit on him.  So the chance begins and we see a host of people coming and going on stage as Bane tries to not get killed.  This is an incredible short summary of the play but you have to go and see it to understand that if I give to much away it ruins the whole thing for you!

All the action and sound effects come from Bane on stage, the cars, bikes, doors, everything you could think of is here and is done by Bane.

How was this made and how was Joe able to produce something that is without peer?  Am sat back listening to this and am blown away.  Joe holds himself well on stage and his comedic timing is unquestionable as he weaves the tale of Bane and the variety of other characters.  One of the greatest scenes in the play (to which there are many) revolves around the hit man and Bruce Bane – this scene is tremendous.

Bane 2 is now playing Pleasance Dome, 8.20pm Daily.

‘See this and stand up and applaud…Joe Bone’s Bane is in a league of its own…and if you don’t stand up and applaud with joy I will give you your money back!’