‘Shadow Boxing’ by James Gaddas is a challenging solo work that explores identity, through examining masculinities, violence, sexuality and vulnerability. It looks at how human beings are subject to their own fights, both inside and outside of the ring. We meet Flynn late one night after he has made the courageous decision to take back the respect society ripped from him, when he was brutally outed. With minimal props and set, performer Samuel Addison embodies 15 characters as he shares why Flynn made this decision, and his journey to accepting his identity as a gay man, within the hypermasculine world of men’s sport. We see him demand the respect he deserves back. The character Flynn allows us to delve into the paradoxical nature of humanity. A paradox Gaddas distils through the metaphor of hands: which can be used to create, hold and caress, or to beat, pound and destroy.
