It's an accident in the year 2000 that sets Dunedin architect Nick Chisholm on his path to being a hero.
It happens on the rugby field, causing a stroke and leaving Nick with locked-in syndrome, the appalling condition that renders its victim conscious but unable to move or speak.
Over the years Nick has learned to communicate and now participates enthusiastically in his family, in society and, now, in a play about himself.
Actress Renee Lyons has created the show and, unflaggingly and engagingly, she brings not just Nick but his mother, Jos, friends Boyd and Liam, and Nicola, the English teacher whom Nick met on the internet and has married.
Soo Young Kim, an extra, fictional character is entertaining but perhaps too stereotypically Korean.
She acts as Lyons' artistic collaborator, the story's occasional narrator and a hospital cleaner.
On a minimal set (a painted white square and a white chair) Lyons shows us the pain of having a family member in Nick's condition, along with disagreements about his care and terrifying decisions about life and death.
Most importantly, she shows us something of what it's like to be imprisoned in your own uncomprehending, unresponsive body.
She brings the audience to see what Nick sees, to hear what he hears and to feel something of his enormous, inexpressible rage and frustration.
The audience's standing ovation at the end of last night's performance was not just for Lyons for creating this deeply affecting and inspiring play, but also for Nick's courage, perseverance and wicked humour.
Nick: An Accidental Hero has been performed in Edinburgh, Melbourne and various places in New Zealand.
Its place in the Arts Festival programme brings it home to Dunedin.
- Barbara Frame
See it
• Nick: An Accidental Hero, Fortune Theatre Studio, Friday, October 10
