A fever dream covered in sand.
3 Billion Seconds, produced by Blinking Light Theatre Company and playing at KXT on Broadway, presents a radical take on radical activism. Directed by Dominique Purdue and starring Izabella Louk and Victor Y Z Xu, the production is commendable for its zaniness. Unfortunately, a slow pace and unclear style limit its impact.
3 Billion Seconds addresses concepts of environmental activism, interpersonal relationships, and climate hysteria. Daisy and Michael are lovebirds and motivated climate activists. When they discover Daisy’s pregnancy, they resolve to offset their offspring’s carbon footprint by murdering as many people around them as possible. This leads to a frenetic series of moral judgments, attempted killings, general confusion and overall chaos.
Louk and Xu give spirited performances. Xu’s ability to play a range of supporting roles is noteworthy; it’s engaging to see him jump between accents, voices and objectives. Louk brings strong physicality to Daisy, as well as the minor characters she portrays. Her take on Janice, Daisy and Michael’s neighbour, is especially notable in this regard. She also brings the passion of someone deeply invested in sustainability, which comes through palpably. Together, she and Xu share a sound chemistry that mostly manages to engage the audience.
Blinking Light’s commitment to sustainable theatre practice is evident in their set (courtesy designer Mia McCormick) and props. The show plays out in the confines of a sand pit, and the cast make use of flower pots, bed frames and newspapers. Almost all of those items are recycled or sustainably sourced, including the sand in the pit. It is a laudable achievement in both the context of the production and the broader theatre landscape.
Despite its strengths, the show is let down by its pacing. As a result of the constant requirement to move between characters and plot points, there are consistent and disruptive shifts in the on stage energy. The cast, subject to those shifts, try to set or maintain a consistent rhythm. But certain moments linger longer than they should and the structure of the play gets confusing at times. Tighter direction and control over the script’s beats was needed.
Underlying that weakness is a stylistic uncertainty. Because the script cannot decide how it wants to convey its message, its delivery of that message is weak. It’s obvious that offsetting one’s carbon footprint by killing people is ridiculous. But if Maud Dromgoole‘s script is meant to be completely absurd in how it expresses that, it’s not absurd enough. If it’s meant to be more human, it’s too absurd. By being unable to pick a side, the production’s overall power is reduced.
Ultimately, 3 Billion Seconds only reasonably manages to tell its story. Despite a good cast performance and a fun, on brand design, the limitations of the script cause issues.
