A modernised reimagining of the 90s thriller
In a world where everything 90s is coming back in fashion, it is no surprise that Single White Female is the latest cult classic film to be adapted for the stage. The movie and book it was based on have had a lasting impact, with the phrase Single White Female taking on a life of its own. The stage show is a reimagining of the film, as opposed to a straightforward adaptation. The basic premise remains the same: a woman, Allie, in need of a housemate puts out a public advertisement. It’s answered by seemingly perfect Hedy, who slowly reveals herself to be unstable and in want of Allie’s life.
Rebecca Reid takes the original setting of New York and transplants it to a major, unspecified UK city. The flat is not a neo-Gothic setting, but an all too familiar crumbling new build. The characters are aged up, and Reid introduces Allie’s teenage daughter Bella. The show is fundamentally shifted by this change, for commentary that is at times effective and at times drags. Referencing AI-generated images in a story about artificial mimicry made a lot of sense, and I found myself wishing they’d spent more time discussing Allie’s broadcasting of Bella online. The sexually obsessive themes of the film were downplayed, as the object of Hedy’s obsession was not Allie herself, but her daughter Bella.
Particular praise must go to Kym Marsh, whose portrayal of Hedy was unsettling right to its core. The scenes where she was alone with Bella (played admirably by Francesca McBride) were particularly frightening. Huge kudos must also be given to Morgan Lange’s design of the flat. The new build which on its surface seems pristine, but the cracks in the walls are visible, is the perfect metaphor for the show.
Unfortunately, it felt as though the script did not trust its audience. Everything was spelt out, and the dialogue did not always feel real; the modern references sometimes felt shoehorned into the show. Particularly the characters of teenage Bella and Allie’s gay best friend Graham, who often felt more like caricatures than fully realised people. Additionally, the combat sequences at the end of the show, and the attempt to incorporate the iconic stiletto stabbing from the film, fell flat and were almost comedic. The very end of the play, where it is revealed that Bella has attacked another classmate, similarly didn’t work for me and felt like it was added for shock value and little else.
There was a lot to like about Single White Female, the performances were strong, there were a few laugh-out-loud moments, and a few moments that left the audience on the edge of our seats. However, it felt as though it was a defanged version of the original 90s thriller.