Brutal and darkly funny one woman play Where do Little Birds Go is a real tour de force. The story of Lucy Fuller who escaped a nightmare at the hands of the Kray twins, the character is a real challenge. Songs, multiple other characters in the story and a final section of genuine fear are all rendered even more effective by Lucy's strength and determination to survive. It crackles along and the atmosphere of the dangerous end of the swinging sixties is powerfully created.
This is an A level or high GCSE play and of real interest to those auditioning, but also it could be opened up to a larger cast and tackled as a really interesting experiment in non-naturalistic theatre. It's a tough read but a real gem.
Funeral Flowers, is a gut punch of a play, at times heart breaking, bleak and genuinely distressing, but Angelique is a survivor in her chaotic and violent world.
This is a real challenge for Year 11 and GCSE students, as Angelique relates her story directly to the audience and becomes the other characters in her life.
It's an adult play dealing unflinchingly with someone who is becoming lost in the system and looking for a way out. The language is strong, poetic and absolutely direct as it builds towards a hideous act that will humiliate Angelique, but gives her the strength to start to escape. It's brilliant but challenging and mature in its treatment of all too believable material.