theatre review

Spreading Her Thinly

5D Theatre Company / Whose Shoes Productions

This is a must see for women in particular, with its jolly and empathetic take on the dilemmas facing modern women struggling to satisfy all the demands placed on them. Most of the story takes place over the course of one week in the life of Nuala, the stay-at-home mother of two, and Jenny, the working mother of two – both of whom are trying to tackle the challenges of motherhood, but in different ways. Both characters are likeable and believable, striking chords of recognition. The funniest element of the show was the messages left on answer-phones by the characters' mothers, which served to further increase the expectations and pressure Nuala and Jenny find themselves dealing with. The play raises those issues familiar to many women addressing the question of how to strike the right balance, and to which there are no easy answers. In the end, both women find friendship and their own solutions. Go see this play and forget your own pressures for a while.

Joogleberry Playhouse, 4, 10, 13 and 14 May, times vary, £8.00 (£6.00), fpp 44

tw rating: 4/5

published: Aug-2008

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