WYLD WOMAN: THE LEGEND OF SHY GIRL
Southwark Playhouse Borough
★★★★
“Renner’s script flows beautifully even though it meanders madly”
Most people, at some point in their life, have had an imaginary friend. Being shy isn’t necessarily a prerequisite for this, but it often goes hand in hand. It is liberating, like talking to a pet. One can be candid, loquacious and fearlessly honest – traits that might elude us when plunged into social situations. Not many of us, however, have switched this idea on its head. What is it actually like to be that imaginary friend? Well, the answer lies in Isabel Renner’s raunchy one-woman show, “Wyld Woman: The Legend of Shy Girl”. Renner has a theatre full of fantasy companions, and it is an absolute joy to be in their company.
Renner is the eponymous ‘shy girl’, on the cusp of throwing her first house party. She is unnamed, but we are all given tags to write our own names on as we take our seats. Some of us are seated at a table onstage, with paper cups and plates – doubtlessly pilfered from a child’s birthday party. Lucy Fowler’s realistic, studio apartment set is dominated by shades of pastel pink, offset by the optimistic glamour of silver balloons. Into this setting, ‘Shy Girl’ shuffles, hunched under the weight of her anxiety. Fidgety and nervous, and somewhat geeky – in a pared down, Emo Philips kind of way. But don’t be fooled. She may be cripplingly inhibited, but Renner herself doesn’t shy away from giving a captivating and assured performance. One that takes some unexpected turns, especially when she adopts other characters. Don’t take your maiden aunt to this show – the language is quite graphic and explicit. She’s pretty forthright, particularly when describing her first fumbling forays into foreplay. By now she has stripped down to a ludicrously Paris-themed, spangly leotard while confessing to still being a vegan “sorry… a virgin – I get them mixed up!”.
Renner’s script flows beautifully even though it meanders madly. And just as polished is Renner’s ability to switch into other characters. We meet her insufferable flatmate, Memphis; we witness her confrontations with her restaurant boss, Patrice, who would give Miranda Priestley a run for her money. Her work-mate and first-date, Pino, is hilariously and satirically portrayed (reminder – keep your maiden aunt away), as is Twilight, her sex therapist; and a leering Rock Star; and finally a gorgeous imitation of a precocious six year old – who happens to be Shy Girl’s unwitting life coach, analyst and confidante rolled into one. Each orbital character is outrageous, yet authentic and comically observed.
As Shy Girl, she is suitably self-deprecating, but beneath the outlandish humour there are layers of vulnerability. ‘You are so quiet it is hard to connect with you’ is a comment repeatedly aimed at her. The ‘cool guys’ (she calls them ‘legends’) that she invites to her party don’t show up. She has to make do with us – her imaginary friends. The relationship she builds is real and organic, and probably different from night to night, but Renner adapts with ease to the situation. It is an intimate experience that gets to the heart as well as our funny bones. While we are laughing loudly, we are quietly uncovering truths within ourselves.
Cameron King’s sharp direction makes good use of the furniture, taking advantage of Renner’s suppleness as she stretches across the table, mounts the fridge or changes an imaginary light bulb. Each movement is a cue for a joke. And each joke, a cue for something else unexpected. Renner knows that shyness is no joke, but by turning it into comedy it makes us receptive to the reality. But enough of the psychobabble, just go along for the party. She’ll be absolutely thrilled you turned up. And so will you.
WYLD WOMAN: THE LEGEND OF SHY GIRL
Southwark Playhouse Borough
Reviewed on 24th October 2025
by Jonathan Evans
Photography by Charlie Lyne
Previously reviewed at Southwark Playhouse venues:
LIFERS | ★★★ | October 2025
THE CHAOS THAT HAS BEEN AND WILL NO DOUBT RETURN | ★★★★★ | September 2025
THE ANIMATOR | ★★★ | August 2025
BRIXTON CALLING | ★★★★ | July 2025
THE WHITE CHIP | ★★★★ | July 2025
WHO IS CLAUDE CAHUN? | ★★ | June 2025
THE FROGS | ★★★ | May 2025
RADIANT BOY | ★★½ | May 2025
SUPERSONIC MAN | ★★★★ | April 2025
WILKO | ★★★ | March 2025
