Per- Verse At Riverside Studios Review

Per-Verse has come to London following a successful run at last year’s Edinburgh. This acclaimed one-woman spoken-word show by Georgie Wedge looks at the trails and triumphs and self-discovery of romantic connections.

Per-Verse is written and performed by Georgie Wedge. Each poetry piece in the show originated as a stand-alone story, about her own true-life experiences, and were performed by Georgie at events across London, before forming the basis of the show. Georgie even makes a disclaimer that everything is true (unless of course, you’re a colleague of hers in which nothing is true!).

Structured as whirlwind journey of modern dating, Georgie moves from brunch with friends to a pub date to an uber and home, all while painting a funny yet realistic account of the highs and lows of dating in the modern digital age. Georgie’s authenticity and rawness came through in her brilliant in her delivery. She had us cringing with embarrassment in the awkward moments and laughing as she retold funny dating encounters. I mean who of us hasn’t drifted away with our thoughts while on a date? Or stuffed our faces with chicken nuggets after a night out?

Yet it’s also a journey of self-discovery as she is reminded of past encounters- – “the ghosts of dating past”. I loved the technique of how this blurred the line between present and memory, and added depth. You can’t help but want her to succeed as she journeys through life.

The music is also worth a mention. I really enjoyed the song choices such as ‘Shut Up just shut up’ when she’s listening to her date or ‘Raining Men’ to set the scene. The colour choice and its myriad of symbolism must also be noted- she’s dressed in red, puts on a red coat, has red hair and at times the stage is painted red.

Having the performance in the River Room was a good choice. The more intimate space with levelled seating, and the book case with nick-knacks makes us feel we are Georgie’s friends, rather than audience members. The 50 minutes just flew by. If Georgie ever wants to extend her performance time, I for one would come.