That’s Not My Name written and performed by Sammy Trotman. The sixty-minute performance is based on her experience of being dragged through the mental health system for various conditions and addictions. Although as a self-professed attention seeker it isn’t clear at times where the real Trotman and the actor Trotman begin and end.
Trotman explains “anything can be justified by a label” after spending time in a very expensive psychiatric hospital she learned that the staff only ever referred to the patients by room number which in itself is unlikely to help their self-esteem.
Is the labelling of mental health conditions in danger of creating a condition for the patient that they aren’t aware of? Trotman suggests that there is a risk to sufferers that this could be the case and it creates more problems! Without being a mental health specialist I wouldn’t feel confident commenting either way.
The entire performance switches between chaotic, disjointed and moments of calm reflection. Schizophrenia at one time was mentioned by a Doctor, it is, therefore, reasonable to see both people during the show. Reflecting the drastic swings of mental illness Trotman has been diagnosed with and suffered from since the age of three.
Trotman has a likeable honesty surrounding her throughout the performance. Although there’s never any suggestion that she is looking for sympathy. The show reflects the delicate complexity surrounding mental health and at the same delivers an insight into the outside world.
For more information on “That’s Not My Name” and future productions please visit the website below.
Four Stars
Theatre, Films and Art reviews 