REVIEW: Rey Camoy, Colchester Fringe Festival ✭✭✭✭✭

Paul T Davies reviews Rey Camoy presented as part of the Colchester Fringe Festival.

Rey Camoy Mercury Theatre, Colchester Fringe Festival. 5 Stars Colchester Fringe Website

A little-known artist outside of Japan, Rey Camoy was described as a “painter of the human condition”. In his career as an artist, he painted drunkards, clowns, disabled soldiers, seeking to find himself in their situation, as he battled himself with alcohol and drugs. He took his own life when he was 57. From Oska, Japan, tarinainanika’s beautiful, exquisite production tells his story through movement only.

Set in Camoy’s studio, the powerful, moving, and emotive score takes us through the painting process and the torture of creating, (art isn’t easy), the imagination and the life he leads and the lives he observes, the company in perfect synchronicity. There are quiet, poignant moments that hint at love that was unable to flower due to inner demons, a lost child, an underbelly of society that is universal, not just confined to one society. It’s such a beautiful piece, the audience watches in rapt silence, the emotions build at certain points, and the tension is released in huge applause at the conclusion. You will want to know more about the artist and his work, this is one of the most exquisite productions I’ve seen in a long time and a true Fringe treasure.