REALLY GOOD EXPOSURE

Soho Theatre

★★★★

“Prescott’s writing is dynamic and light”

In ‘Really Good Exposure’, Megan Prescott charts the fictional Molly Thomas’ evolution from teenage starlet to porn star. Prescott, who appeared as Katie Finch in the hit teen series ‘Skins’ in the 2000s, draws on her own and others’ lived experiences of exploitation and grooming in the entertainment industry to address a plethora of issues: the sexualisation of minors, the financial barriers to the pursuit of a creative career, and women’s (lack of) agency in the commercialisation of their bodies. In doing so, the actor-writer weaves a compelling and intersectional, if somewhat didactic, web.

Prescott delivers a strong and self-assured performance, easily filling the stage at the Soho Theatre all by herself. Her portrayal of Molly Thomas alternatively as a child, a teenager, and a young adult feels sincere and consistent. In this, she is aided by Hattie North’s precise and extensive sound design, particularly the many recorded voices that Molly constantly converses with – her mother, her agent, a casting director. Recordings, of course, inherently don’t really ‘respond’ to a performer like a fellow actor might, underlining the unyielding nature of the characters’ demands of Molly. Additionally, the voices’ incorporeality (if I may) reinforces the central fact that the characters they portray all profit off of Molly’s body, and her body alone. Director Fiona Kingwill dresses Prescott in a bedazzled set of underwear even in the scenes from Molly’s childhood, allowing her to highlight continuities between sex workers’ costumes and what girls wear in dance competitions, for example. It’s touches like these that make the interplay between Prescott’s acting and Kingwill’s staging of the play feel refined.

However, Kingwill’s heavy dependence on tech sometimes takes away from the emotional punches the script delivers, particularly in the latter half of the play. Though Rachel Sampley’s lighting design is beautifully done, the videos she created to be projected to the back of the stage sometimes overpower Prescott, while montages of tweets and newspaper headlines felt unnecessary and teetered on cliché. The overreliance on tech is best illustrated by the effectiveness of a moment in which it is turned down: in a central scene, Molly is essentially forced to strip naked while auditioning to play a stripper. Her anguish comes across very well precisely because there’s no projection and the music is eerily quiet, as if being played in an empty dancing hall. Literally nude on stage, Molly comes across as ‘truly’ naked for the first time because she cannot hide behind loud music, stage lights, or projections.

Prescott’s writing is dynamic and light, though it loses some of its focus towards the end of the play, with the scenes in which Molly partakes in ‘Romance Reef’ (a.k.a. Love Island) feeling rather gimmicky. Additionally, the final monologue takes on an overly didactic tone. As Molly, Prescott essentially tells the audience how the show is meant to be interpreted, spelling out the message that sex work can be about taking control of your body and sexuality. It is a powerful and controversial stance in a world where sex workers are simultaneously portrayed as helpless victims and arbiters of immorality, but I wish Prescott had let her work speak for itself more. A layered piece about a divisive topic, ‘Really Good Exposure’ offers a night of thought-provoking entertainment.

REALLY GOOD EXPOSURE

Soho Theatre

Reviewed on 3rd September 2025

by Lola Stakenburg

Photography by Damian Robertson

Recently reviewed at Soho Theatre venues:

JUSTIN VIVIAN BOND: SEX WITH STRANGERS | ★★★★★ | July 2025

ALEX KEALY: THE FEAR | ★★★★ | June 2025

KIERAN HODGSON: VOICE OF AMERICA | ★★★★★ | June 2025

HOUSE OF LIFE | ★★★★★ | May 2025

JORDAN GRAY: IS THAT A C*CK IN YOUR POCKET, OR ARE YOU JUST HERE TO KILL ME? | ★★★★★ | May 2025

WHAT IF THEY ATE THE BABY? | ★★★★★ | March 2025

REALLY GOOD EXPOSURE

★★★★

“This is an impressive play with real heart”

Has-bian. Slang for someone who ‘was’ a lesbian. But what does that really mean? Society’s understanding of sexual (and gender) identity has become more fluid in recent years. The binary of gay or straight is being rejected by many in favour of more nuanced definitions that attempt to capture the breadth of human experience. It is these issues that Beth Watson (writer/performer) and P Burton-Morgan (director) explores in their solo performance named after the aforementioned insult in the amusing format of reading from their teenage diary.

The diary – blue, with an ‘emo’ tear drop on the front cover – is typically adolescent. The drama that Beth and their gang of misfits – all reimagined as stars from 90s romcoms – drink straight vodka at parties, worry about their GCSEs, and have the utmost faith that their teenage relationships will end in marriage. At the same time, the pages reveal an almost liberating acceptance of queerness. Beth – at the age of 14 – talks openly about lesbian sex, enjoying a fling with best friend Lindsay (Lohan). The friends compliment each other by saying they look ‘dykey’ and attending the Brighton pride parade is an annual tradition.

Sadly, over the diary’s two-year span, this young, unashamed joy is slowly eroded as the reality of homophobia and the effects of policies such as Section 28 take hold. The group pretends to be ‘normal’ – aka straight – at sleepovers and Beth wills themself to fancy the dreamy boy-next-door Ashton (Kutcher). In one particularly poignant moment, the young Beth describes life as looking out of two windows – one dirty (queer) and one clean (straight) – and never quite connecting to either. Beth also touches on the negative influence of their childhood movies like Cruel Intentions which present sex and relationships as transactional and someone’s worth tied to their ‘fuckability’.

The space is simply dressed with two benches on which Beth sits and lies. The narrative is aided by four red shoes – all Beth’s own – that are placed around the stage. First, red jelly shoes – representative of Beth pre-puberty. Next, red Reebok Classics – indicative of Beth’s desire to fit in with their peers. Thirdly, red Doc Marten boots with bedazzled toes – showing Beth’s pride. And, finally, red stiletto heels – symbolic of the traditional femininity to which Beth feels the pressure to conform.

At the back of the stage are two surfaces shaped like binder notebooks on which images and quotes from Beth’s diary are projected (Edalia Day). This is highly effective and provides significant visual interest throughout the performance. The text is stylised – depending on the tone and nature of what Beth has written – and the photo editing is terrific.

The show does a great job at integrating accessibility into its performance. Captions are available throughout, audio description by Quiplash UK is used to describe the action on stage, and the various people that Beth discusses all have a sound bite from a famous movie to indicate their arrival on screen. At times, the latter does upset the storytelling flow, but it is a small price to pay for the worthwhile endeavour.

Hasbian is a very vulnerable show. Reading out one’s teenage diary would be most people’s worst nightmare and it is commendable that Beth is so open about the complicated – and rather embarrassing – feelings inside. This is an impressive play with real heart – it is definitely worth a watch.

Tag Archives: Rachel Sampley

REALLY GOOD EXPOSURE

★★★★

Soho Theatre

REALLY GOOD EXPOSURE

Soho Theatre

★★★★

“Prescott’s writing is dynamic and light”