[2008084] A Slip Of A Boy
A Slip Of A Boy (FringeTIX)
Pygmalion Theatre @ Fringe Factory Theatre (The Tea Room)
7:30pm, Wed 12 Mar 2008
This show demonstrates why we need the Fringe. Because theatre like this would never receive mainstream acceptance.
Our boy is a pining and lonely chap. Desperate for love and acceptance, he - in indirect and flowery language - decides to create the girl of his dreams. Great plan, eh guys? Well, the results are very Goldilocks-y; the first of his creations is far too similar to the boy, so the girl doesn't love him - for he doesn't love himself. The second girl smothers him with love, but the third girl - the "just right" girl - is willing to wait, willing to learn who the boy is - and love him over time.
The boy is loud, bold, almost overacting bad-Shakespeare-stylee with his wafty language. The girl(s), on the other hand, is more perfunctory with her speech. Direction is ace, with the couple roaming the stage well before settling in a spotlight for key moments, though I don't envy them their costumes on this stinking hot day. And there was some nice industrial ambient noises underpinning the work.
It's a short piece - maybe only forty minutes - and, like I said, it's definitely got the oddball-Fringe feel to it. Worth a peek if you've got a gap in the schedule, and don't mind the lack of subtlety in the dialog.