Revlon Girl Review - ONIN London

Picture this: one day you send your children to school but they never return. How would you cope with your grief? How would it affect all aspects of your life? Who would be walking alongside you to support and encourage you? The Revlon Girl, a play currently performing at Park Theatre and just having being performed at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, asks these questions in a sensitive, poignant, funny and moving way.

On 21 October 1966 a major disaster hit the small Welsh mining village of Aberfan. A giant slide of waste slid down the mountain destroying the village and killing 144 people. Of those, 116 were primary school ages children. Set 8 months after the disaster, The Revlon Girl is based on the true story of a group of women who meet regularly to chat, cry and try to cope with their grief. One day they invite a Revlon representative to their meeting to help them with beauty tips and to help them remember who they are as individuals. Amidst the tea and cigarettes, there are tears, laughter, anger, blame, reminiscing of their own childhood, new hopes expressed and a sense of self discovered.

An all female performance with superb actors including Charlotte Gray, Bethan Thomas, Michelle Mcternan, Zoe Harrison and Antonia Kinlay. From the quieter moments, through the crying and anger, to the laughter, I felt that each emotion was beautifully depicted. It had me laughing and biting my lip to stop from crying (and I don’t usually get emotional in plays!).

A simple set and props of a lamp, table and chairs, bucket and, of course, Revlon make-up allowed the focus to solely be on performance and narrative. Darkness and audio sounds of children playing commenced the production. A running theme throughout the play was of a water leak, so the sound of water dripping was constant but added to the ‘realness’ of the socio-economic setting. The brighter light at the end conveyed a sense of hope. I found myself wishing that these characters would continue on their pathways to healing and acceptance, and that their friendships would be stronger as a result.

A run time of 85 minutes with no interval, allowed the audience to be enraptured by the emotionally-charged narrative written by Neil Anthony Docking and directed by Maxine Evans. The sensitive topics were handled with care. Though the approach of one character telling their story and so on until all have told their stories is nothing new, I found myself wanting to share a cup of tea with these ladies and hear more of their stories.

Although set in the 1960s, the experiences and journey of these women transcends time. The play looks at how individually and as a community we process grief including the physical, mental and emotional aspects, and how difficult it is to put on a ‘brave face’. A beautiful, powerful, heartbreaking and uplifting portrayal of life, love, loss, friendship and self-identity. I would highly recommend seeing this profoundly moving play.

Performances run until 14th October. Tuesday to Saturday evenings at 19:45 and Thursday and Sunday matinees at 15:15. Tickets start at £10 for young patrons and up to £18 for standard adult tickets.

Address: Park Theatre, Clifton Terrace, Finsbury Park, London, N4 3JP

Website: https://www.parktheatre.co.uk

Phone: 020 7870 6876

Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/ParkTheatreLondon

Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/parktheatre

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theparktheatre/

Written by Caitlin Neal