Did Guide ring false or rock Rebecca Paul's world?
A Guide to Second Date Sex (*****) is a funny and frighteningly accurate account of this dreaded, yet necessary, ritual.
The stage reeks of youth: a Sports Direct mug sits next to the laptop, the odour of Lynx hangs in the air, dirty underpants are strewn on the floor, the bed is crumpled, even though it's made and the bathroom has pubes on the floor. Laura meets Ryan properly for the first time in this bedroom, plucked from the comforts of the boozy pub where an attraction - vague or otherwise - was established.
The immense fun of this show is the 'Oh my God, I've been there' factor as we see the two move stiffly, touch tentatively and talk bollocks. Panicked thoughts play aloud, educational shorts discussing basic sexual attraction appear above our bachelor's scruffy bed and there's the usual problem of our lady visitor having not shaved...
Mishandled, the simple premise of this show threatens to be sleazy and clichéd, but here it is crafted perfectly and slickly, mixed with humour. The whole narrative, though exaggerated, is consistently filthy and funny, though it never veers too far from the believable so audiences can consistently imagine themselves in the position of one of our protagonists.
Actors Amy Butterworth and Thomas O'Connell play off one another's crippling self-doubt and, surprisingly, there's a genuine sense of attraction and tenderness between the two despite their inharmonious union. A Guide to Second Date Sex is achingly funny and entertaining theatre which you want to tell your friends about.
A Guide to Second Date Sex is on at Underbelly. Check website or programme for times and dates.
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