Park Theatre presents the UK premiere of Paper Cut. Estranged Twin brothers Kyle (Callum Mardy) and Jack (Joe Bollard) reunite and attempt to rebuild their relationship after the carnage from childhood and Kyle’s return from war.

Kyle served in Afghanistan after being struck by an IED blast whilst on active patrol resulting in the loss of both of his legs and much of his genitals. The announcement of the death of Bin Laden is surely a reason for him to celebrate and feel some closure!

The many themes raised in Paper Cut blur at times. It would have been stronger if only two or three themes would have been the focus and those storylines developed with clarity. Especially the restoration of the twin’s relationship. Kyle’s deep remorse and feelings of hypocrisy after “outing” Jack to their homophobic father at 15 destroyed the family at the time and with both their parents deceased Kyle is powerless to rectify this.

Strong themes of love drive the 90-minute production,d deciding how to move forward and be honest with yourself leads to bad decisions while Kyle confronts himself face-on which is never an easy choice when you have spent years in denial and trying to hide away from the truth!

Sadly, the script fails overall to deliver the potential to pack the powerful punch it should have. Raising awareness of what can happen after a war ends and how adapting to a new life as an amputee can affect the soldier’s mental health and feelings of inadequacy for future intimate relationships. There are moments where you are caught up in the storyline, and then it tends to ‘drift’ off, losing the built-up momentum, leaving me disappointed.

For more information on Paper Cut and future productions at Park Theatre, please use the link below.

Three Stars.

Photo credit Stefan Hanegraaf.

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