The following scenes are more effective, looking into the complexities of toxic masculinity. Standing in the spotlight, the man is undressed and fistfuls of coffee grounds are thrown at him from above. The camera pans around him while the beeping and murmuring background sounds amplify a haunting aura. I feel suffocated as I watch him trying - and failing - to get rid of the coffee grounds and he ends up being drowned and consumed by darkness. This overwhelming gesture turns him into a beast. For this ‘beast man’, violence and emotional restraint reflects the apex of manliness. Lim displays a good balance of rawness and assertiveness in showing the man’s struggle with toxic masculinity.

The performance also depicts physical abuse faced by many women, which leaves them with painful scars. My emotions were triggered by a scene where the woman is violently raped by the ‘beast man’. In describing her memory, she says “something just snapped like a twig”. She points out the five steps of physical love, while the man's arms wrap around her like shadows devouring her in the darkness. The scene is done stylistically with a dim spotlight and haunting sounds which depict the woman being trapped by the man in a dark and narrow space. Despite it being Aisha’s debut, she gives a powerful performance that successfully contrasts the notions of being loved and being violated through her impactful monologue. It is a constant battle for women as they do not feel safe from violence. The woman says she is locking her feelings in a box and is holding the key, symbolising how women are withheld from safe spaces where they are able to freely express themselves. Like how the man pushes the woman off after he is done with her, these women are left in the dark.

The final scene - my favourite - shows Dexter and Aisha dancing through strings of elastic bands where they confront their memories, and each other. The elastic bands remind me of a forest of memories. Their chemistry and dance movements are raw and fluid. They bind themselves with the elastic bands and push and pull each other, conveying both a sense of confronting the past and letting it go. The classical music and subtle lighting suit the mood well as the duo portrays the memories in their complex relationship.