Proper Adult – Altrincham Garrick

Life is funny. When we’re young we can’t wait to be grown up to do all the things we can’t do. And then when we’re adults we wish we could relive our youth. That is exactly what ‘Proper Adult’ by Megan Relph captures.

This is a short one woman show where we meet Rachel, who has just turned 18 and has started her first job. Although we soon realise she’s not prepared for adulthood.

New writing is always something I look forward to in the fringe, you have no idea what to expect. While I felt this was a good production with some nice moments, it was too short to really get emotionally invested in it. In its current format, this would work well as a warm up act, or as a series of short plays performed in one evening. Having said that I do think Relph has the bones of something here and would be keen for her to explore it in more detail as I think the subject matter is something people do struggle with and rarely speak about.

The script was well written, pacey and humorous which kept the audience engaged throughout. Relph played all the characters herself and did a great job in transitioning. There was at least one occasion where I feel she forgot to switch voices when changing characters, but we can forgive that on opening night.

Relph broke the fourth wall quite often during the performance. There were even some comedic moments with the tech, which I’m sure were in the script, but did have a feel of Mrs Brown’s Boys about it.

Proper Adult is showing at the Altrincham Garrick until Saturday, 4th September 2021. Tickets can be purchased here – https://www.altrinchamgarrick.co.uk/bookings/event-details/?EventID=Proper

Reviewer: Brian Madden

Reviewed: 3rd September 2021

North West End Rating: ★★★