A creative concept culminating in relatable, humorous and poignant plays.
From Matchstick Theatre Company comes Hits and Pieces performed at The Cockpit Theatre, with four plays inspired from a song suggested and voted for by the public. The song chosen for this month is “Toxic” by Britney Spears and the end result was four very different plays some with similar themes, which was interesting and an overall nostalgic approach to them.
With Britney Spears being a gay icon – it seems only natural that sexuality was the main theme of two of the plays. “Tommy Crispino’s Tasty Lips” (written by Mark Daniels and directed by Natasha Vasandani) told a story of two school boys and their sexuality-one confident in his, the other unsure with the constant worry of the consequences of someone finding out in the early noughties-which is wild to think was the case only twenty odd years ago. The other play (I’m addicted to you” written and directed by Natasha Vasandani) was two teachers in their thirties in 2024, which was an interesting contrast as the characters could be open with each other, despite the toxic dynamic.
Whilst “A Poison Paradise” (written by Annette Brook and directed by Mark Daniels) didn’t write about sexuality – it did focus on societal pressures on women in your thirties and being too old to be interning; it also commented on the class difference and played on that really well and hit the mark on relatability. “I can taste the crown from here” (written by Emma Read and directed by Rebecca Hewett) was also a relatable piece, commenting on race and self-acceptance.
The staging for all four was simplistic – chairs and an upturned stairs block for two of the plays. Although the staging was very bare, the performances engaged you and really brought to life that setting without the need for a fully dressed stage. Each play was funny, some more than others because it was how the playwriters approached it; each one was relatable and I think that’s where the nostalgia comes from, growing up in the noughties with the unrealistic images that were plastered everywhere you can really see how it has impacted society and how a lot of people from that generation are today. The costume design was all current and expressed the characters. Lighting was straightforward; either dimmed house lights but use of colourful spotlights was used effectively in the last piece highlighting the chair’s purposes, which I thought was a clever way to get across the intention without the need for a set.
Hits and Pieces is a fun concept and it is interesting to see how writers interpret a song. The four plays chosen for this occasion were creative, relatable and humorous. The performers brought to life the characters and really drew you into the piece and I loved the audience participation of a song suggestion. Really intrigued to see what comes from the chosen song for next time!