We oscillate effortlessly between hilarious vodka filled exchanges and emotionally loaded conversations. This show is funny, honest, and powerful.
The formative experience of clubbing as a teenager is a right of passage. Kat Rose-Martin’s hilarious new show captures this experience fully, from the club bathroom, to the dance floor, to the escapism of drinking vodka and dancing the night away. Funny, stark and emotional, £1 Thursdays is a beautiful coming of age story that will make you laugh and cry.
Finborough’s intimate space is excellently utilised, transporting us straight into Ocean Club, the hottest spot for Bradfords 17-18 year-olds. Nostalgic 2000s hits (think every number 1 from 2012) blast from speakers as Jen (Yasmin Taheri) and Stacey (Monique Ashe-Palmer) totter on their heels to find a new boy to pull, and up that evenings number (of kisses).
Jen is a maths wiz, she’s smart and could go places with it. But she’s also smart enough to see that University isn’t for people ‘like her’, working class and from underfunded Bradford, and she’s struggling to break out of the story prescribed to her. Stacey wants to do nothing but dance, and luckily she’s good at it. But with a hectic family life and a million other responsibilities, who knows where to start with dance college? But Jen and Stacey can forget all of that as they head to Ocean every Thursday, not just for the cheap entry and snogging potential, but to escape the reality of exams, mums, possessive boyfriends and the future.
Kat Rose-Martin’s writing oscillates effortlessly from hilarious vodka filled exchanges and emotionally loaded conversations. It gives the performers a lot to work with, and they all rise to the challenge. Ashe-Palmer and Taheri as the main duo play excellently off each other, traversing the hilarious tit-for-tat that form the base of a lot of female friendships. Every detail from Jen’s messy bun, to the corset tops and skater skirts, to the headstrong passion that comes from being an insecure teenager feels familiar and realistic. Many of the funniest scenes take place in the toilet, where every knows the best conversations take place. In the dark corners of my brain I know every word to every song, have worn those outfits and been to that club.
Vicky Moran’s direction complements Rose-Martin’s punchy dialogue beautifully. Every pause, every emotion, feels uniquely and powerfully timed and considered. ‘You don’t get to call me that’ says Jen when Stacey calls her a ‘slut’ in a moment of anger. It’s an understated and powerful testament to the intensity of those friendships, of feeling like two against the world, and the devastation when that illusion is taken away. From STDs to domestic violence, to university, every topic is handled with grace, empathy and realistic humour.
All the performers were strong, including Sian Breckin as Jen’s fiery, sweet, self-defence loving, menopausal mum. But Monique Ashe-Palmer’s understated and striking Stacey was a standout performance. Stacey’s abusive relationship storyline could have easily been overdone and cliché, but under Rose-Martin’s pen and Vicky Moran’s considered direction each moment is met perfectly. Much is said in the silence in this production, and it results in a profoundly beautiful portrayal of being young, ineloquent and flawed.
In short, £1 Thursdays is a startlingly honest look at the precipice of girlhood and adulthood, and navigating the challenges of being working class, from Bradford, and human.
Runs until December 22nd.
Review by Dulcie Godfrey