The Big Story is that of the War of the Currents: the battle between Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla to create the world’s most efficient power source, with Edison backing direct current and Tesla advocating his own invention of alternating current. The story is told through re-enactment of dialogue between the two men and their associates and the narration of a modern day scientist who is inspired by Tesla’s works.

The Small Space is a specially-created space of about a metre square surrounded by cushions and seats on the Basement stage.

Written and directed by Pip Smith and Jen Mead, this play follows Edison and Tesla’s rivalry to its inevitable conclusion, illuminating some little-known facts about the genesis of electricity as we know it. The injustice of history is also revealed as Edison’s obsession with success and monetary gain ultimately allows him the renown that Tesla’s greater intellectual genius deserved. 

The actors make nice use of the space, entering from all possible angles and interacting well within such confines even with up to five people on stage. The intimacy also gives the play a more informal feel appropriate to this kind of storytelling, as do the homemade scientific instruments. It’s the most inventive use I’ve seen of a whisk and fifty plastic cups.

Despite an interesting story, however, I found it quite difficult to engage emotionally with this piece due to a lack of character development. The egotistical and odious Edison (Fabian Takiari) immediately alienates the audience, which would work well if we could then warm to his rival Tesla (Roberto Nascimento), but Tesla’s detached persona and intense work ethic fail to endear him to us.

It would have been nice to see a little more about Edison and Tesla’s lives outside of their work in order to help us identify with them. Also, the interaction between Tesla and the modern day scientist at the end of the play could have been utilised throughout in order to connect with a contemporary audience. 

With a running time of only forty minutes, we are bombarded with a lot of information with little time left over for simple storytelling, which often makes the argument difficult to understand. Also, the explanatory narration (Chris Tan) was occasionally mumbled, again making the through-line hard to follow. 

There is a great spark of a story here; an historical expose on the injustices of capitalism and a rightful homage to a great man whom time forgot. The science and history are fascinating, but without a human connection, the story cannot help but fall a little flat.