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The Wasp

Etcetera Theatre

Reviewed – 24th June 2019

★★★½

“Lacey and Sammons both acknowledged the significance of each word so the author’s themes could be truly heard”

The Wasp, by Morgan Lloyd Malcolm depicts the encounter of two old school mates as they are reunited for the first time in twenty years. These two friends could not be more different, yet a startling proposition bonds them once more as their fraught history resurfaces with serious repercussions.

Peppered Wit Productions took this ambitious play on with great confidence and control, not being intimidated by the density of it. As a two-hander both actresses, Joanne Sammons and Tara Lacey kept up their stamina and their energy buoyant throughout the ninety minute play. Barely leaving the stage, they were engaging and took the audience on a journey with them providing a believable performance with the characters developing well.

Malcolm’s writing at times can be curt and Pinteresque and then contrast with lengthy monologue type responses – this could easily be lost by actors with less understanding, yet Lacey and Sammons both acknowledged the significance of each word so the author’s themes could be truly heard.

Peppered Wit Productions is a self funded company, creating their work collectively. They are an example of what collaboration done well looks like. The set design and directorial choices were well placed and executed with quality and professionalism – all done on what one can only image to be a somewhat meagre budget. They are also dedicated to bring theatre to audiences far and wide, making it accessible to communities who are often marginalised and left on the outskirts of the theatrical world. This is a very commendable trait of this accomplished theatre troupe.

The Wasp is a tale of psychological turns and societal dichotomies. Malcolm asks questions about the inherent nature of violence within human beings, about nature vs nurture and how childhood is more than simply a time in our past but the foundation and catalyst to our future life choices – all of which was depicted with dexterity, humour and commitment.

Reviewed by Pippin

Photography courtesy Peppered Wit

The Wasp

Etcetera Theatre ahead of Edinburgh Festival Fringe

Last ten shows reviewed at this venue:

Little by Little | ★★ | September 2018

The Break-up Autopsy | ★★★★ | October 2018

Never Swim Alone | ★★★★ | November 2018

Jailbirds | ★★ | December 2018

The Very Well-Fed Caterpillar | ★★★★ | December 2018

Bricks of the Wall | ★ | January 2019

Click here to see more of our latest reviews on thespyinthestalls.com

★★★★

“an edgy and exciting thriller that fully deserves an audience”

Playwright and screenwriter Morgan Lloyd Malcolm has had an astonishing career to date, and her feminist rally-cry of a play ‘Emilia’ is currently enjoying a West End transfer at the Vaudeville Theatre. This production is a well-timed revival of her 2015 work ‘The Wasp’, a riveting two-hander with the heart of a Hitchcockian thriller, and enough twists and turns to make any production worth a watch.

Heather (Lucy Pickles) arranges to meet up with old high school pal Carla (Rea Mole) to offer her a job. But not just any job: Heather wants Carla to murder her husband Simon. For £30,000. Carla, expecting her sixth child and living a dead-end life, needs the money, so she agrees. To say more would reveal too much, but the ensuing scenes involve childhood bullying, ex-marital affairs, lies (lots of lies), and a stark choice between kindness and violence. Both women prove to be duplicitous is some way, and it’s gripping to see this intoxicating script play out live.

Directed by Sarah Fox, this production stands on the shoulders of greatness and does good justice to Malcolm’s script. Taking place largely in Heather’s living room, the set design is exquisite, all pastel tones and IKEA furniture – a very adult home. On the wall is Simon’s insect collection, including the all-important tarantula hawk wasp, whose tactic of laying eggs in a tarantula’s abdomen, a tidy metaphor for the ways in which violence and survival intersect.

Pickles and Mole give slightly unsteady performances but will easily grow into these roles. Pickles is especially well suited to Heather, oozing a sophistication that cleverly misdirects the audience enough to make her arch the bigger surprise of the night. Although the drama buzzes long nicely, the ending doesn’t quite have the sting you would expect. Both women certainly have more tactics to play with than were on show last night. That aside, Fox has constructed an edgy and exciting thriller that fully deserves an audience.

Reviewed by Joseph Prestwich

Photography by Robert Bettelheim

Etcetera Theatre

Reviewed – 24th June 2019

★★★½

“Lacey and Sammons both acknowledged the significance of each word so the author’s themes could be truly heard”

The Wasp, by Morgan Lloyd Malcolm depicts the encounter of two old school mates as they are reunited for the first time in twenty years. These two friends could not be more different, yet a startling proposition bonds them once more as their fraught history resurfaces with serious repercussions.

Malcolm’s writing at times can be curt and Pinteresque and then contrast with lengthy monologue type responses – this could easily be lost by actors with less understanding, yet Lacey and Sammons both acknowledged the significance of each word so the author’s themes could be truly heard.

Reviewed by Pippin

Photography courtesy Peppered Wit

The Wasp

Etcetera Theatre ahead of Edinburgh Festival Fringe

Last ten shows reviewed at this venue:

The Space

Reviewed – 23rd April 2019

★★★★

“an edgy and exciting thriller that fully deserves an audience”

Reviewed by Joseph Prestwich

Photography by Robert Bettelheim

The Wasp

The Space until 27th April

Last ten shows reviewed at this venue: