Touching, open queer rom-com performed by a pair that command the stage and connect with the audience

Happy Meal, fresh from the Fringe, is treating the Oxford Playhouse and Coventry to a witty, touching queer rom-com. The Burton Taylor studio is perfectly suited to this intimate story – placing the two actors – Sam Crerar (Alec) and Allie Daniel (Bette) – close to the audience and ensuring we are thrown headfirst into their whirlwind relationship.

Using social media as a plot point – we travel through Club Penguin to MySpace to Facebook to Instagram (which is a nostalgia trip in itself) and learn about Alec and Bette through the virtual world and the personalities they put out there versus who they are in the real-life.

Running at an hour and fifteen, this is a short and succinct play that keeps the pace and energy up and the audience engaged throughout. Exploring the fear of coming out as transgender, accepting who you are and the trials of trying to access medical support, as well as the gender dysphoria that can be a constant presence was handled with delicacy and also an approachability that made the play easy to follow whilst tackling some tricky topics.

Without spoiling the show I can say that it was an eye-opening experience. It’s a play I think deserves a greater tour, greater visibility and perhaps to be used in more educational settings – it gave a platform to transgender individuals through the method of a romantic comedy storyline – something in mainstream media would still most likely feature a cis-heteronormative couple. It was sad to leave the theatre and realise that this in itself was a reason for the play to standout – theatre and arts as whole needs to do more to normalise transroles in plays.

To conclude – I must tell you the truth – I found myself in tears at the end – I’d become so invested in Bette and Alec’s story and through the duo’s acting and the vulnerability of the script I was fully immersed in their world and the ending came too soon.