More than ever, we are concerned about how the world is. It is slowly decaying and the extinction of wildlife continues. In this one man performance, we really take a look at this on a mass scale in a clever piece of performance art.

Tom Bailey is already in full performance mode. With a basic presentation on the wall behind and accompanied by a vocal announcement, there are bizarre names, latin, some are comical, some unusual, some complex, this prompts Bailey to attempt to impersonate the animal. As soon as we are sat, he interacts with us, climbing amongst us, or encroaching on our personal space, in a way animals would. We are also asked to take a card and later think about what the animal may be, how they may hunt and live. This is all very comical and fun, full of energy and changes in movement.

However, once we are lulled into this comfortable state, we are starkly hit with the reality. A almost pre-show, durational performance, Bailey trekked across miles, with a sheet listing the hundreds of thousands of animals extinct, creating photography pieces in these landscapes. In person, this is accompanied by an explosion of bones across the space, which he continues to perform physical theatre amongst, changing the comical dynamic to something blunt and dark. This combination has not only made us comfortable to accept the change, but puts us in a position of realising reality in a in-your-face way. It is clever and ever so moving as well as highly performative.

Wild Thing! sets out to make a serious point about the state of the world and its demise, with the use of clever comedy to soften us until hitting us with the dark reality. It is fantastically performed and curated to be not only a piece of theatre but performance art with a host of supporting media, making very important commentary on the destruction of the environment.