Perceptual Archaeology (or How to Travel Blind), which stars Alex Bulmer assisted by Enzo Massara, is a show about blindness and coping with it.  It opened in the Studio Theatre at Crow’s last night.  Going to see it involved confronting my worst nightmare and so I sat near the door in case  needed to escape (thanks Crow’s).  So what’s it about and how does it work?

Alex Bulmer, after much poking, prodding drops and bright lights, was diagnosed with a hereditary condition that meant she was likely to go blind “sometime in the next five to fifty years”.  Eventually she lost her sight and started to work on ways of coping.  I think one of the things that comes out here is how losing one’s sight is rather different from being blind from birth.  The strategy, and the substance of the show, was to get a grant to follow in the footsteps of James Holman; a former naval officer and, subsequently, blind travel writer.  Now Bulmer didn’t follow him by climbing Vesuvius or swinging from the rigging of sailing ships but she did follow his itinerary through the Rhineland before deciding that America’s “music belt” worked best for her.  I can’t imagine what James Holman would have made of Graceland.

She tells her story with humour and a handful of props and the use of Enzo as a sort of guide, line feeder and, almost, a prop.  We encounter the castles and cathedrals of the Rhineland mostly through touch and sound (smell doesn’t figure much perhaps surprisingly) and there are some scary incidents involving football fans, the far right and a railway station.  Every time it seems about to get too much she comes up with another good joke.  It’s clever, balanced and well paced.  But somehow the Rhineland doesn’t take Alex where she needs to go.  Somehow her resolution comes in a road trip through Georgia and Tennessee in the form of small town radio stations.

The production, which is directed by Leah Cherniak and is a co-pro of Crow’s and Fire and Rescue Team is designed for sighted and non-sighted audiences and includes a touch tour of the set for those who need/want it.  It’s intimate and greatly enhanced by the sound design of Deanna H. Choi and Thomas Ryder Payne.  I did find myself listening to parts of the show with my eyes closed though that might just have been bravado on my part.

In short, not only did I not run screaming from the theatre but  I found the show insightful, touching and very funny.  It’s certainly a lot more fun than the two hours of poking, prodding, eye drops and bright lights I have scheduled for next week.  Perceptual Archaeology runs at Crow’s Theatre until June 25th.

Photo credits: Dahlia Katz