Search for Goldini

In Search of Goldoni at the Bristol Old Vic’s Weston Studio is a new show which takes us through the streets of Venice to the hospital wards of Romford and into the inner workings of the protagonist’s brain as he desperately searches for shade from the storm in his mind.

The one-person comedic play follows writer and performer Saikat Ahamed on a family trip to Venice, savouring Italian delicacies while simultaneously asking soul-searching questions like what life is really about and what happens when we leave this earth.

During the holiday, Saikat is busy dragging his family around the winding cobbled streets, eating every flavour of gelato, serenading gondoliers and obsessively thinking about a bloke called Carlo Goldoni, some Venetian twins and the death of his father.

The highly inventive show explores memory and grief and celebrates theatrical traditions.

Written and performed by Saikat Ahamed, and directed by Alix Harris, the production will embark on a tour of the West Country including the Bristol Old Vic, Theatre Royal Plymouth, Sterts Arts and Environmental Centre just outside of Liskeard and Falmouth Poly.

It is a real South West story of collaboration, produced by Beyond Face, directed by Beyond Face’s artistic director and founder Alix Harris, and supported by Theatre Royal Plymouth and Cornwall’s Impossible Producing.

Both Beyond Face and Saikat are part of Bristol Old Vic’s Associates scheme and are collaborating for the first time. Founded in 2015, Beyond Face is a theatre company that supports local global majority writers and theatre makers to develop their craft and share their work with live audiences.

Saikat is an actor, writer and poet based in Bristol and has starred in theatre, film, TV and radio as well as working as a writer for stage. He said: “In Search of Goldoni” has been a show a long time in the making, it has sat with me through many drafts, in countless dreams and in half formed images that always seem just out of reach.

“Since I lost my father in 2016, I’ve been fascinated by the idea of memory, what we remember, what we make up and then convince ourselves we remember and all those moments that are so deeply buried that only an internal earthquake will bring them to light.

“In Search of Goldoni is a show about trying to keep it together when everything seems to be falling apart and realising that sometimes it’s ok to let it go.”

Saikat said some time has passed since his father’s death and the script is now more reflective and more nuanced than initial drafts. He never wanted the play to be therapy on stage. Similarly, he did not want the personal to drown out the universal. The new production is saturated in as much hope as it is loss.

This witty and moving solo show is a journey through memory, grief and the search for meaning – wrapped in sharp comedy and a heartfelt personal story.

In the play, it has been a year since Saikat’s father died and he is not doing so well. But the spirit of Carlo Goldoni awaits around every corner and Venice with its decaying beauty which cleanses the soul.

The play explores memory and grief and celebrates theatrical traditions, shining a light on the unique and sometimes surreal relationship between Saikat and his father.

The set and costume design by Aldo Vázquez subtly compliments the narrative without overpowering and that was is true of the lighting design by Rajiv Pattani, and Nicola Chang’s sound and composition.

Saikat Ahamed is a natural and immediately likeable storyteller, and he mixes sharp wit with deeply personal reflections on family, love and the complexities of a father-son dynamic. Through a combination of heartfelt storytelling and his signature self-deprecating humour, Saikat creates a touching tribute to his mercurial father.

The result is a highly engaging show that effortlessly oscillates between laughter and deeper emotional reflection, blending humour with emotional resonance.