David Lynch was very much an unknown quantity when producer Mel Brooks chose him to direct The Elephant Man. Lynch had only one feature to his name, his surreal cult classic Eraserhead, which had taken him five torturous years to make. In director Paul Vickers’ What Broke David Lynch?, we get a small taste of the complexities involved in creating his much-loved follow-up film.

Vickers (aka Mr Twonkey) plays the director himself and, while it’s not a perfect impression, he does capture something of Lynch’s oddball persona and his rather eccentric cadence. He’s very much helped by Miranda Shrapnell as ‘Dorothy’, a typical Lynchian dreamgirl, perhaps inspired by the director’s fondness for The Wizard Of Oz. Hers is a standout performance, channelling Twin Peaks’ Nadine Hurley as if Lynch is her Big Ed. We also meet John Hurt, Anthony Hopkins and John Gielgud, all portrayed to mixed effect, and it sometimes feels like the cast of four are each in a different show.

The production is peppered with Lynchian motifs, including a discordant soundtrack, and fans will enjoy spotting references from across the director’s career. Primitive staging and a small space compel the performers to explain much of the action, so it can seem rather stagy, but it’s enthusiastically performed and appropriately surreal, particularly when the cast break into song.
Greenside @ Nicolson Square, until 27 August, 9pm.