Sex and relationships playfully deconstructed.
The evening began with an experiment. Can two actors learn to perform good, consensual sex and play out an intimate relationship, unrehearsed, script unseen?
The on-stage performances of Lucy McCormick and Anoushka Lucas nevertheless pushed through the challenge of being fed dialogue by a couple in a sound proof box. This never-seen script before performance is undoubtedly a great challenge, but unlike Tim Crouch’s An Oak Tree, the concept here didn’t quite match the narrative.
Two stories were being told at once. The story of a couple uniting during COVID following a messy, painful breakup and the reality unfolding before our eyes – two actors trying to create intimacy for the first time, live on stage. Though exciting, this mismatch between the concept and the narrative did often remove my emotional investment in the story of the couple, lacking believability.
An intriguing concept, this dynamic rippled through the audience at the start and end of the play as well as throughout as the intimacy co-ordinator intervened. This moment created an interesting breakdown of the performance vs the reality of sex, and the way our bodies are used to tell a story.
In one particularly successful moment, the intimacy coordinator transformed a comedic kiss to one of painful tension and passion, a hunger of two people reuniting after a long and painful time apart.
I only wished McCormick committed more. Her playful question of ‘are we meant to be acting properly’ was hilarious but slightly at odds with the gravity of the moment unfolding in the story of the relationship, furthering my disconnect to the story of the couple.
Aedín Cosgrove’s stage design stole the show for me. It was delightful to see a flat, a life, a story of the relationship being constructed before or eyes as the story and relationship expanded. The cheeky interactions of the stage hands with the performers bought some great comedic relief and fantastic choice by Ben Kidd’s direction with truly leant into the playful cheekiness that comes with metatheatricality.
Liv O’Donogue was fantastic as the intimacy coordinator. A godlike presence, she offered insightful perspectives and meditations on sex and also led a particularly joyful moment of animal noises throughout the audience that felt both fun and freeing.
Overall, Good Sex was an intriguing concept, asking meaty questions. Despite the disconnect between its premise and its narrative, it was a fun and cheeky breakdown of what it means to simulate sex on stage, revealing how much of our stories is told through our bodies and the way they interact with one another.
Good Sex’s run at The Battersea Arts Centre concludes tonight. Tickets here.