If you’ve ever suffered a bad date, then you may find either solace in tonight’s show, or confirmation that it’s time to delete a few apps off your phone.
Described as a ‘love letter to the over-thinkers, worriers and anxiously attached’, Picking is a one-act, one woman show from the pen of Amelia Slater.
We meet Catherine who, left to her own devices for the night whilst her flatmate visits a boyfriend, tipsily sways between near misses with a disastrous would-be booty call, pining for the good guy and considering lesbianism.
Catherine’s Fleabag-esque misadventures as she scrapes for a self-esteem boost provide plenty of laughs, some moments of poignancy and a mildly horrifying insight into the perils of young Millennial/Gen-Z dating.
Occasionally, like Catherine’s dating efforts, the show can feel like it’s trying a bit too hard. The monologue that inspires the title of the show feels disconnected to anything else, and the source of a male gaslight-y disembodied voice she regularly argues with isn’t clear (an ex she didn’t get over perhaps?)
But a disastrous trip to a karaoke bar and her battle of wills with her flatmate’s cat Malcolm are a hoot and, despite some bumps, the writing has some lovely moments.
And whilst there may not be any new epiphanies in this latest addition to a growing sea of ‘I am woman’-type offerings, a strong performance from a genuine and likeable performer is enough to let the audience root for Catherine to climb out of her pyjama-clad slump and cheer as she leaves us to explore a potential and slightly unexpected source of happiness.
For remaining Fringe show details visit https://greatermanchesterfringe.co.uk
Reviewer: Lou Steggals
Reviewed: 28th July 2024
North West End UK Rating:
New Zealand collective Binge Culture's Werewolf arrives at Summerhall with considerable word-of-mouth behind it, and sizeable audiences…
The beauty of the Edinburgh Fringe lies in the fact that you, as an audience…
Karla Boye has flown into the Fringe with her part two series of Call Me…
There is a good little play struggling to get out of Horrorshow. Written by Doug Deans…
There is something inherently unsettling about agreeing to take a lie detector test, particularly when…
The Regent Theatre Stoke-on-Trent was welcomed to Burlesque in style. The 2010 film had been…