Extinguished Things
Things we loved
- Molly Taylor
- Smart set
- Exquisite storytelling
Things we would reconsider
- This reviewer lost the thread a couple of times, in an otherwise well constructed narrative
Extinguished Things is an important reminder about the value and significance of “the mundane” in our lives.
As Molly explores the empty flat, occupied, until recently, by her neighbours of 40 years, we learn things about them and ourselves as she considers various items from wall hangings to furniture pieces to letters found in drawers.
In the process of retelling stories lost, Molly’s tale is a stern reminder to those of us under the spell of minimalism guru, Marie Kondo, whose mantra is to discard any items that don’t bring us joy.
However, as Extinguished Things makes clear, we are not always aware of the profound groundedness we receive from “mundane” items like old records and sugar cannisters.
Each of these things trigger memories and stories and insights, against the greatest theme of all, captured beautifully in the title of MIlan Kundera’s poignant work, the “unbearable lightness” of being.
We are reminded how the thread of life can snap instantly, for any of us. Suddenly, our tending of a fireplace the night before becomes the last time we ever tended a fireplace, the last homely action in our domestic quarters.
Equally, we see the connection to community felt by some in supporting a local team (Liverpool, in this case), along with the skewed perspectives of childhood memories in which seemingly small moments for adults linger and loom large in the memories of children.
This new play by Molly Taylor stands tall upon the shoulders of her previous Adelaide Fringe hit, Love Letters To The Public Transport System.
If you can still your mind and let it rest with a charming, amiable actor in a reflective one-person play, this is for you.
Throw away your Marie Kondo guidebook and discover joy with some tickets to Extinguished Things at Holden Street Theatres.