Review: Bucket List, Fringe 2024

I can only imagine how terrible being haunted by an ex-partner would be. Especially a recent ex, and Luke died about 30 minutes after his break with Jess.

In Bucket List, which the Edinburgh Fringe site describes as both dark and funny (correctly), we start as Jess hears Luke has died and then blip-blop back and forth between pre- and post-death scenes.

We have post-death scenes with Luke since he’s a ghost. The play only hinted at why and how Luke is a ghost. There’s no Ghostbuster-style technobabble to justify the appiration. Luke’s just there. The couple had talked about such things, and we see those scenes, but for all we know, this whole thing is nothing but Jess’s post-traumatic response coping mechanism.

I think Luke is a ghost.

Imogen Usherwood‘s writing is tight and crisp. Each scene lasts about a TikTok, delivers exactly what you need and does so powerfully.

The actors’ faces are obscured in the promo material, and I don’t see them mentioned in the show notes. It’s certainly possible that Show Don’t Tell Productions rotates actors throughout August, but after a bit of desk research, I think I watched Theo Joly as Luke and Marianne Nossair as Jess. If so, both are great. Either way, let’s nag the Fringe site to make space in show descriptions to name actors.

While I enjoyed the 45 minutes of emotion, I admit to having doubts about Luke. Jess is just great. She’s practical, gets stuff done, and does so without fuss. Luke means well but is nothing but a string of failures in this play: his job, his relationship, and, ultimately, his life. What triggered me the most, though, was his demand that Jess understand how he feels. I didn’t feel she owed him anything, let alone trying to echo the emotions of a spirit.

My concerns about whether I liked Luke as a person and whether he was nothing but a life drag bundled with charismatic good intentions take a dark twist in the play’s final scene. 

Tone

Bucket List is dark; “If I wasn’t dead, I’d kill myself”.

It’s also funny.

It’s about two young people: one who is getting on with life without grand ambitions and is doing well, and the other who is not doing much due to unfulfilled aspirations and fears of wasting their youth.

I imagine there’s something in both characters that we can relate to. Jess and Luke are both credible humans who feel close to us in reactions and mannerisms and are both approachable, which helps get the audience emotionally engaged quickly.

My anecdotal evidence for this comes from how swiftly the audience in the performance I attended began to gasp, laugh and mutter at the appropriate times.

I also want to highlight a pleasant oddness. In theory, there are two tracks in this play – pre-ghost and post-ghost with the action flicking back and forth. It may not have been the writer’s intent, but I enjoyed the limbo in between. The lights go dark and the two actors quickly prepare the basic set for the next scene. It takes seconds, but Theo and Marianne moved so well, so precisely, with trust and confidence in each other, that it was almost magical to watch. These lights-out moments aren’t supposed to be part of the performance, but they did feel appropriate to it. 

What to Expect

TheSpace’s Theatre Three is quiet and comfortable, but the seating is flat, and you might not always get a good view of all the stage. The performers spend more time on the left (as you look towards the front) than on the right, but it wasn’t a problem for me.

Bucket List quicks off quickly with a scene designed to get your attention. Looking back at it now, it foreshadows the characters that Jess and Luke are later revealed to us to be. 

Attention grabbed, Bucket List eases off the gas a bit and jumps back to when the couple first met.  We don’t get dating drama, and I think that’s the right call; it doesn’t feel important. We do get some bonding moments, though, such as looking at bucket lists together.

Is a bucket list a way to ensure you don’t waste your time on Earth? I think it depends on the wisdom you deploy in writing the bucket list.

Sometimes, the actors leave the stage area and encroach down the aisle between the audience. It doesn’t happen too often, but if you’re like me with bad knees and a bag, then take care to tuck your bag and feet out of the way. There’s not that much space for actors to dash about in, and it is dark.

You should expect the 45 minutes to pass quickly. That’s always a good sign.

Overall

I enjoyed Bucket List. I’m not usually engaged in ‘dealing with breakup’ dramas, but this play adds a ghost, and that seems to make a big difference!

Bucket List appears straightforward, with only two people on a simple stage, but it’s complex and clever with emotions. Ghosts rarely feel as real as this.

Theatre fans should grab a ticket while Bucket List is still on at the Fringe. As the play itself reminds us, if you don’t do it now, you might not get to do it at all.