Blue Tights, Red Knickers and an ‘S’ on her Vest

Lion and Unicorn Theatre

Reviewed – 14th August 2019

★★★

 

“the tone is charmingly undramatic, somewhere between a ‘my rubbish life’ comic monologue and self-deprecating lifestyle piece in a colour supplement”

 

Microaggressions at work, the indignities of commuting, the strain on relationships caused by overwork… these experiences speak to millions. In this production, they speak directly to Jenna, alone on stage while others in her life are represented by disembodied voices. It’s an elegant way to portray social anxiety as a world inside the head that alienates even those who try to help. The homemade superwoman costume Jenna wears signals her as the people pleaser, taking on piles of paperwork from idle colleagues while working late to fulfil her own stressful function as a legal representative.

This everyday story is low key and familiar, something of an attractive change for a Camden Fringe show. A victim of mildly disappointing annual reviews and far from horrific workplace bullying incidents, Jenna bemoans the lack of pastoral care from the firm but also dreads the camping break they organise as a bonding exercise. She resents the loss of support from best friend David as he moves away but is wary nevertheless when he tries to stay in touch, and although she groans at her mother’s calls, it’s her mother who worries enough to pay for her endless therapy sessions.

It’s an interesting conundrum, figuring out how to respond sympathetically to someone so relatively fortunate without falling into the same trap as her work colleagues. It’s easy for the insensitive or inexperienced to dismiss depression and anxiety disorders with ‘get a grip’ and ‘cheer up’, yet it’s not clear from Jenna’s description that she is suffering from either of these serious mental health problems, as opposed to the stress of working in an unhealthy culture.

Thematic Theatre is co-founded by the play’s writer and main performer, Laura Shoebottom, along with Liam Ashmead, who both directs the piece and voices the role of David. Created expressly to stage productions with important themes, they tackle here the subject of mental health, but in their own misdiagnosis of anxiety as something that can be cured by changing jobs or being more assertive – in other words, by getting a grip – they threaten to undermine their message and mission should anyone examine them too closely.

However, the tone is charmingly undramatic, somewhere between a ‘my rubbish life’ comic monologue and self-deprecating lifestyle piece in a colour supplement. Laura Shoebottom writes and plays the central character with a drily knowing quality, while her self-confident presence is given excellent technical support from Chuma Emembolu, Daniel Foggo and Phil Matejtschuk in the sound design and lighting departments. For a city-living audience the time passes pleasantly, affirming that their bad work experiences are common and that if you do occasionally feel isolated, you’re not alone.

 

Reviewed by Dominic Gettins

Photography courtesy Thematic Theatre

 

Blue Tights, Red Knickers and an ‘S’ on her Vest

Lion and Unicorn Theatre until 16th August as part of Camden Fringe 2019

 

Previously reviewed at this venue:

In the Wake of | ★★★ | August 2018

The German Girls | ★★★ | August 2018

The Cut | ★★ | November 2018

BackPAGE | ★★½ | February 2019

Like You Hate Me | ★★★ | April 2019

Mama G’s Story Time Roadshow | ★★★★★ | May 2019

River In The Sky | ★★½ | May 2019

Euan | ★★★★ | July 2019

The Death Of Ivan Ilyich | ★★ | August 2019

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