Beautiful Burnout

In a festival more renowned for its breadth of choice than its universally high standards, the National Theatre of Scotland is as close to a sure-fire bet as you can find. With worldwide hit Black Watch tied neatly under their belts, they have teamed up with movement specialists Frantic Assembly to create the masterful Beautiful Blackout, a sophisticated and thrilling look at the world of boxing.

Set against the backdrop of strict guru Bobby ‘I’m God’ Burgess, Beautiful Burnout follows five boxers as they go from ordinary street nobodies to masters of the ring. Bryony Lavery’s script offers an insight into the dynamic world of amateur and pro boxing, charting each power play with an envious lightness of touch. 

She revels in the glory and potential glamour of the sport with poetic monologues that carry tones of religious devotion. This is mirrored in Scott Graham and Steven Hoggett’s luscious movement sequences performed against the pumping orchestrations of Underworld. It’s an exhilarating performance, if a tried and trusted story of the tragedy implicit in such a violent world.

The cast are at their physical peak and there is a palpable sense of bodies being pushed to their limits and back again. But Lavery’s easily anticipated plot gives them little to play with in terms of emotional muscle, falling instead into two dimensional stereotypes, with the show's conclusion feeling frustratingly overwritten.

It all looks and sounds incredible, however, and for all its predictability, Beautiful Burnout is a holistic feast for the senses.