Beowulf: The Blockbuster

Bewley’s Cafe Theatre

*****

Bryan Burroughs knows how to tell a story, even through the unborn eyes of a self-confessed "omniscient narrator" that is about to be delivered by C-section.

With nothing but his bare-footed self and the empty space of a minuscule corner-set stage, this captivating one-man show bears all the merits of an action-packed motion picture (and more), without so much as a prop, gimmick or special effect in sight.

Through Burroughs's expert metamorphoses and compact direction by David Horan, we meet an array of epic creatures as the tale of the great fated Beowulf unfolds with polychromatic brilliance before us. As enchanting as the legend may be (for us, as well as the nine-year-old boy to whom it is being told), our senses are rightly cuffed throughout by the reminder of why it is being told; it's a father's only way of telling his son he is dying.

Ends Sept 14 (matinee Sept 20)