The word Icarus has a couple meanings: In classic Greek mythology Icarus, the son of Daedalus who flew to close to the sun on artificial wings and they melted and he fell to his death; in astronomy, it’s an asteroid whose eccentric orbit brings it closer to the sun than any asteroid.
These themes are present in Rob Gee’s Icarus. In Gee’s story we meet Simon who is a psychiatric patient who is plotting his escape, especially from Dr. Grayson. He meets a little girl named Millie and decides to take her on his adventure to go to Egypt because he is, in fact, the King of Egypt.
Gee is funny and engaging and blends his stories together seamlessly, that you can’t help but be captivated by his storytelling. Simon is angry and it’s nice to spend time with him. Gee manages to give insight into some of the systems in place to deal with the people that we determine have a chemical imbalance, while having quite a bit of humour in the mix.
Icarus is a great story with a really great storyteller.
Icarus is part of the Calgary Fringe Festival. More information is available online.
Photo Credit: Nick Rawle