In Wake Up and Deirdrealize, Deirdre takes you on a side splitting journey to realisation.
Through the stance of self-help and adopting the notion of ‘fake it til you make it’, the audience is captivated through elaborate monologues of how Deirdre herself came to her realisation which was a certainly a one of a kind journey.
Lucy Harrington adopts an eccentric, outlandish and melodramatically inspirational character in Deirdre to successful captivate a diverse audience in the entirety of her one-woman show. This characterisation combined with her flawless improvisation, witty one liners and tactical fourth wall breaks is something to be celebrated.
Alas all good things must come to an end and the question of will Deirdre complete her journey without the help of Dolly Parton provoked a surprisingly cathartic atmosphere in the audience.
Through the use of minimal lights and simplistic, melodramatic music, the quality of the script was truly highlighted in this moment and shows I Am Nincompoop’s talent as a theatre company for being able to carry the audience from an emotional high to reflection in one musical change.
Perhaps if Deirdre had more props herself making her more relatable to the audience, and embodied her own experience as she encouraged the audience, this catharsis could have been more profound and audience interaction more enthusiastic.
Nevertheless, for such a small audience, Harrington courageously connected with them and did not hesitate to own the stage and work through technical difficulties. It was this professionalism that carried her through and made the shift in dramatic tone successful.
While Deirdre’s story was engaging and comical, this could have been enhanced through the use of set, props, music or projections, transporting the audience from their own transformation, to Deirdre’s and therefore making the change in story more engaging and powerful.
Additionally the audience were fully participating come the end of the show but could have used some instructions form Deirdre at the beginning, this could have helped to minimise the tense and uncertain atmosphere at the beginning which would have made it more enjoyable for the audience and helped Harrington.
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Reviewer: Becky Rose | Rating: **** Four Stars | Production: I Am Nincompoop