It’s the type of show that challenges your ideas and makes you uncomfortable
T. Regina Theatre Co’s Scenes with girls is a fascinatingly frustrating work of modern theatre. Mariam Battye’s original play is a unique exploration of love and identity under the strain of societal expectations. Confusing, irritating, and uncomfortably honest, Scenes with girls speaks to the heart.
Lou and Tosh: roommates, best friends, absolute pricks. But also a brilliant depiction of female friendship. I always find that the trademark of a good show is relatable characters. Scenes with girls definitely has that. Hannah Renar as the adventurous, sex-addicted Lou, Lindsey Ruiz as the radical celibate Tosh, and Elinor Rose-Cooper as poor little Fran. It is an irritating show only because of the very realistic obnoxiousness of the leading ladies.
I can’t really fault any of the acting. Each woman created a distintive character in such a way that made it difficult to separate the actress from the character. Hannah Renar’s performance as Lou was marvelously chaotic; she was a lot but so was her character. Her performance was very physical and her comedic delivery was brilliant. Lindsey Ruiz is a good actress but Tosh was so unlikeable that I find it difficult to properly critique. Her dry humor and off-kilter manner did draw you in but her unnecessarily loud delivery of certain lines was jarring. Elinor Rose-Cooper was perfectly pitiful as Fran. Her role was smaller than Lou and Tosh, but she was the only likeable character to grace the stage.
Mariam Battye’s script tries too hard. It is full of wonderful moments but they’re scattered between an excess of theory offered up as social commentary. The fast pace kept the audience engaged but didn’t allow the opportunity for the full emotional impact. Perhaps it was intentional, but I struggled to be drawn into the story because I was so confused for the first half. The sporadic and sometimes erratic bouts of dialogue helped to build the characters, but confused the plot. When it did finally offer a complete scene, it came like water on a hot summers day. The clarity was a much needed respite from the chaos of the introduction.
Every technical aspect of Scenes with girls was intentional and effective. Sans one wow moment that you’ll have to see for yourself, Phil Hamilton’s lighting was extremely simple, on and off. Every change was purposeful and exactly what the show needed.
The set was a mess but it made perfect sense. It would take me a while to count the number of rugs and card games scattered about the space, but it looked lived in just as it should. I particularly enjoyed the design of the restroom area and its use throughout.
Scenes with girls is an interesting theatre piece but the plot and the characters are so frustrating that I want to be able to say I disliked it. But I can’t. It’s the type of show that challenges your ideas and makes you uncomfortable. Isn’t that what good theatre is meant to do?