★★★★
AN apparent plot against a parking warden may seem like a thin premise to stretch over a 90 minute production – with an interval – but the nuance of Robert Cohen’s beleaguered character kept his one-man show compelling.
Cohen, who starred in Glengarry Glen Ross at this year’s Brighton Fringe, excelled as the well-meaning but occasionally off-colour Quint.
Having been taken off the streets for his own safety – after being struck by a miscreant with a tranquiliser dart – Quint was moved to teaching duties, explaining the warden craft to a batch of new recruits, flip-chart and all.
Quint was never more than a word away from dropping an un-PC clanger, and Cohen skilfully navigated his character’s strained relationship with his gay son, whom, it turns out, he upset with a homophobic comment some years back.
These flashbacks were perhaps the most impressive feature of High Vis. Cohen weaved past incidents into the narrative so that we – and the recruits he was supposed to be training – ended up learning a lot about his past life. It never felt forced, although a scene in which Quint staggered into the teaching room apparently drunk failed to convince.
Understandably alarmed but also slightly revelling in being at the centre of a crime spree – ‘It’s not all about me,’ he said, meaning the opposite – Quint’s unhappiness in life repeatedly bubbled to the surface. His refrain of ‘it’s humour’ subtly masked his dissatisfaction.
Despite his foibles, Quint is ultimately likeable enough that the audience shared a moment of joy with him right at the end of the play, when his estranged son finally returned his calls. That didn't have to imply a happy ending, of course, but we found ourselves hoping it did.
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