In an empty shop unit next to Harvey Nicholls, three actors perform in parallel with six colleagues in London and Colchester, seen on two screens mounted side-by-side.
This latest experiment from Station House Opera offers a rich and entertaining mix of visual paradox - particularly since three characters, identified by costume, are shared between the different venues.
There is little in the way of conventional storyline. Instead there is a kind of collage of dramatic motifs - entrances and exits, botched sexual encounters, sudden flarings of murderous rage.
The contrasting environments - Birmingham's swish and stylish shop, London's panelled library and Colchester's disused church - are linked visually by simple connecting devices: a yellow hat, a blue box, a red dress, a white chair.
At one point a man leans out of a window in London and speaks to a man sweeping the churchyard in Colchester, then speaks directly to a man in Birmingham as identical chairs are overlaid on-screen. Characters in London and Colchester play a piano duet on perfectlyaligned keyboards.
Gradually the spaces blend further into each other. Particularly effective use is made of a blue curtain to create continuous widescreen action between Birmingham and London - or was it Colchester?
The prevailing mood is playful and surreal. Clearly the technology of streaming video via the internet is at a primitive stage, because image quality from the remote venues is fuzzy, with frequent digital break-up.
Yet this primitiveness adds an unexpectedly attractive dimension. Technically advanced and sophisticated as the show clearly is, it brings to the digital cutting edge some of the naive innocence Georges M>liEs brought to the infant cinema.
Highly recommended, especially as admission to Live From Paradise is free - but call 0870 730 1234 in advance to reserve a ticket.
Running time: One hour 30 minutes (no interval). Nightly until June 4 (7.30pm).
Terry Grimley
