“With no set, sweeping costume changes, or indeed any props – it is a testament to the performer that even a streamed version of this work remains effective and engaging.” – Felicity Anderson
3.5 mobile phone cameras / 5
A slew of eclectic characters, a handful of big themes, and a single performer – a precarious recipe for any performer, but not an impossible one for Hideto Ambiguous.
His one man show Frames of the Chaos follows Shinzo, a fourth-generation immigrant, on a trip from Japan to California. He is there to visit his grandmother, but as a strategist himself, he decides to capitalise on a concurrent media and communications strategy conference. A vlogger in his spare time, Shinzo is set to record the events of his trip in order to appease his 7000 subscribers back home. Hideto Ambiguous (Akasu) performs to multiple cameras within the black box Motley Theatrette in Fitzroy for a digital audience during Melbourne Fringe. Ambiguous embodies both Shinzo and all the people he meets upon the way.
It would seem that 25 year old Shinzo is met with a tough decision on the trip, when he records footage of a protest as it becomes violent. The footage seems to implicate a big tech company and the police in a conspiracy of illegal data collection that allows for targeted policing of people of colour regarding immigration status. The crux being that the tech company is also a client of the consulting firm that employs Shinzo. He must decide whether or not to release the footage and expose the corruption – all the while his actions are monitored closely.
Ambiguous is a lively and committed performer. His strong depiction of each personality in the story is aided by camera switches in creating a great clarity between individual characters. Ambiguous is able to effectively slow the pace at integral moments of the show, but the high energy does feels a little frantic at times. Whilst the rapid dialogue lost me in moments, it does seem purposeful – the chaotic delivery is reflective of major themes in the piece. The show is introduced as a live reenactment of the fictitious documentary – giving the audience a chance to create their own ‘frame’ of understanding. The message being that chaos surrounds us always, and the choices we make are only regarding the way we will frame it.
With no set, sweeping costume changes, or indeed any props – it is a testament to the performer that even a streamed version of this work remains effective and engaging. Whilst the show takes a little time to find its footing, the final thirty minutes of the run time fly by.
It is my hope that Hideto Ambiguous is able to bring this performance to live audiences eventually, a great start to Melbourne Fringe 2020. Frames of Chaos appears until the 29th of November as a part of Melbourne Fringe’s digital line up.
Felicity Anderson, Theatre Now
