helena smith & justin moir
Ne Desperemus is a collective creation that hasn’t found its story yet. The over-arching premise is exploring the idea of two people who are destined to meet one another through a series of coincidental connections as they struggle to transition between High School and University life.
I liked the moments when the characters’ individualities shone through and I wanted them all to be more unique individual people as opposed to generalized representations of First Year students’ typical problems. There is a character that goes on a treasure hunt for pirate booty. I wanted there to be more about THAT adventure! There was some beautifully crafted and intellectual language that made me curious about how the way this character spoke reflected who he was and what his specific experiences had been in the world so far.
Often in attempt to make characters and scenarios easy to relate to inexperienced playwrights will try to tell their stories as broadly as possible, when, in fact, it is the most specific, the most unique scenarios and characters that best reflect our universal humanity. Very few of us have been in Hamlet’s exact situation, for example. His story and his personality are not at all typical of what it means to be a 20-something young man, and yet he has been reaching people’s hearts and toying with their minds for over 400 years. Food for thought.
TWISI Rating: 
Ne Desperemus plays at the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia (1723 Hollis Street) as part of the Atlantic Fringe Festival at the following times:
Saturday 7 September at 6:45pm
Tickets are $5.00 and are available in advance online at this website or 30 minutes before each show at the venue on the day of the performance. All tickets bought in person must be purchased with either cash or credit. For more information please visit this website or call 902.422.7604 between 10:00am and 5:00pm.
