one4review | On 01, Aug 2025

Taiwan Season: Where Has All the Fruit Gone? is a rather charming little piece that explores the passage of time, families, and even how “What do you want to be when you grow up?” is an international question. Fruit, in this case, the simple tangerine, is our metaphor of choice to represent the passage of time, whether receiving fruit boxes from home as we grow older, remembering how they were a sweet treat, or even a grandfather’s tale of the origins of the tangerine and how things get passed down from one generation to the next.

There are two warm and engaging performers leading us through the story, and they deliver a fun, yet quite simple, show. The talent is the standout here, and although the story isn’t anything new, they do both bring a fantastic energy which I think, without it, would have lost the room.

The humour is surprisingly funny and inventive, using everyday objects to represent family, which felt a bit kitsch but landed well with the audience. The piece has nostalgic moments, is pleasant and will leave you feeling quite wholesome overall, but it’s unlikely to linger long.

***
Reviewed by Matthew
Assembly Roxy – Downstairs
11.20 (50 mins)
Until 24 Aug (not 11 or 18