REVIEW: Girls Like That

Wow.

As the end of term late show, I wasn’t expecting too much of this show. I knew it would be relatable and have a strong cast, but I wasn’t expecting to be blown away – especially at the end of a long day of an even longer term.

How wrong could I have been?!

I don’t often admit when I’m wrong, but this show is everything you want it to be, and SO much more!

Photo credit – Johannes Hjorth.

The set is simple, a series of small boxes dotted around the stage. Each side of the box is used in different scenes to represent a new location. It’s effective and very complimentary to the projections on a back screen.

Photo credit – Johannes Hjorth.

The use of multimedia in the show is impressive. The endless scrolling through facebook and Instagram selfies had me feeling like I was sat back at home, making the play even more relatable. The choice of music was also excellent. Accompanied by dancing, which was slick and incredibly sassy (Megan Thorpe), it made this show look even more professional. Although there were small moments where this dancing looked less confident, this is only a minor thing that did not detract from the overall performance.

photo credit – Johannes Hjorth.

The actresses were fantastic. They were all strong, and carried their lines with confidence. They also worked well together. I truly believed I was seeing 8-year old girls at a pool party or 5 year -olds in school. The various tones of voice, changes to their body language and simple additions to their costume supported their presentations of multiple characters. It was clear who was who, and what was going on.

photo credit – Johannes Hjorth.

Their chemistry was equally impressive. I felt gutted to be in the audience – they were having so much fun up there together! The director, Hannah Sands, has done an excellent job. The creative choices in the use of freeze frames, soundscapes and choral movement were great. It was entertaining and allowed the show to present comparative moments of innocence and maturity whilst continuing to deal with important and difficult themes. Personally, I am looking forward to seeing more of Sand’s work at the ADC.

photo credit – Johannes Hjorth.

A quick mention must go to Matilda Wickham, who gave an impressively strong and emotional performance as Scarlett. Her ability to play multiple characters in one scene by herself had me gripped. She was confident in the space; her performances were striking and she was easy to watch.

The script was, as expected, relatable, but also funny, and the audience laughed along throughout the night. The lighting was also great and well used. I was particularly impressed with the use of the single spot on Scarlett, and the lighting used to create the swimming pool scene.

photo credit – Johannes Hjorth.

Slightly louder projection would have been better over the scenes with music and some of the dancing could have been a little ore confident and tighter. Ultimately, though, all these guys need is a bigger audience.

This show was great – and I urge you to see it. Please don’t waste the opportunity to see a piece of theatre deal with contemporary, relatable issues in such a creative, slick, and effortless way.

Trust me, you don’t want to miss ‘Girls Like That’.

4.5 stars

More of Johannes’ photos can be found here.