Queerguru's Andrew Hebden reviews THIS BITTER EARTH "enormously satisfying on all levels"

Do you feel safe? Right now? Where you are and who you are? If you do, do you know what you have? Harrison David Rivers’ remarkable This Bitter Earth, directed by Peter Cieply, evokes what a privilege it is to feel safe. It is the story of two gay men, one black and one white, who meet at a Black Lives Matter march.

Despite the fact that Rivers claims he didn’t think of himself as a political writer this 70-minute play is political to its core. However, the politics doesn’t crush the humanity of its characters, the deftness of its writing, or the intimacy of its dialogue. In it the black writer Jesse (Martin Edwards) concentrates on his own writing, at the expense of his activism, whereas his white lover Neil (Max Sterne) is out marching as an ally to the BLM cause. In their own ways they are playing it safe, Jesse has the comfort of his talent and Neil has the protective armour of his whiteness and wealth. They recognize this trait in each other but struggle to see it in themselves.

The play is unhindered by chronology. It darts backwards and forwards in their relationship. How they break up, how they date, how they meet. The only anchor points are the atrocities that became the flames of Black Lives Matter. Say their names: Treyvon Martin, Eric Garner, MIchael Brown, Tamir RIce, Freddie Gray, Jamar Clarke.

Whilst the writing stands on its own the delivery by Edwards and Sterne is impeccable in a tiny theatre where the tiniest shrug of the shoulder, and in one perfect scene, the roll of a tear, are within arm’s length of the audience. It doesn’t shy away from the ick of seeing a couple fall in love and the annoying flaws that make them perfect for each other. Jesse is too self consciously uptight and Neil is so unconsciously assured. Stitched in is their own navigation of what they enjoy in each other’s race, and its tropes, as well as appreciate in their respective individuality.

In its UK premier of a short two-person piece in a small theatre, this would be such an easy play to miss. It’s too good to let that happen. Whether it’s the references to the music, poetry, and characters of the Harlem Renaissance, the contemporary tribulations of the BLM movement, or the queer love story that hooks your interest this is an enormously satisfying play on all levels.

Review by ANDREW HEBDEN

Queerguru Contributing Editor ANDREW HEBDEN is a MEDIA & CULTURAL STUDIES graduate spending his career between London, Beijing, and NYC as an expert in media and social trends. As part of the expanding minimalist FIRE movement, he recently returned to the UK and lives in Soho. He devotes as much time as possible to the movies, theatre, and the gym. His favorite thing is to try something (anything) new every day.

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Queerguru’s Andrew Hebden reviews THIS BITTER EARTH “enormously satisfying on all levels”