By Dave
Link: https://nottinghamplayhouse.co.uk/events/oh-for-fcks-sake
Available until: 14th May
Captioned version available. You’ll have access to both versions when you book.
Content warning: Contains strong language, scenes of a sexual nature and some cartoon violence. 15+
Comedies can be really difficult if you happen not to find them funny and unfortunately that was the case with this one. However although I didn’t really enjoy the play itself, the subject of it was very interesting and I did enjoy thinking afterwards about the ideas in the play.
Oh For ****’* Sake (I’m in Love with You) is set in a post-apocalyptic world. Gender doesn’t exist so everyone is non-binary. It sounds good in theory but to me that’s actually a step back. All genders should be accepted and gender is about psychology, not biology but if everyone’s non-binary, you’re not accepting men and women and a lot of people identify as as those genders.
More seriously for our characters, falling in love and having sex are against the law so of course that’s exactly what they go and do. (That’s probably a bit of a spoiler but it’s mentioned on the Nottingham Playhouse website, as well as in the title.) The problem is that sex in this strange world only works if you and your partner have the right equipment. This seems a big step back too. We’ve definitely moved beyond the feeling that sex can’t happen if the two people have identical equipment. The idea that we could actually take a step back like this is really worrying.
Samson Hawkins’ dialogue is snappy and there are certainly some interesting insults flying around (which makes it difficult to believe the two characters love each other but then again, it worked for Mr Darcy and Elizabeth). The basic idea of the society is definitely an interesting one and although it seems completely unworkable to me, it did make me appreciate the world we live in a lot more so if that was the aim, it’s very clever.
Director Craig Gilbert has made considerable use of sounds in order to help listeners build up a more complete picture of what’s going on. He’s also used different devices to alter the voices of the actors which helps to give the impression of the not completely human world they’re living in.
There are six characters. One is voiced by the writer but the other characters are shared between two actors. Although the voice-altering devices definitely helped to make the voices sound less human, they didn’t hide the fact that these two actors are very good at creating different voices which sound completely different – I had no idea there were only two actors.
The trouble is that most of the characters are very annoying. Sandra, voiced by Shaofan Wilson, is the most interesting of them as they really seem to consider the possible consequences of their actions and to have desires beyond their own happiness. Shaofan also plays Alex, one of the main characters, and delivers their insults with style and precision. Ben Norris plays Robin, the other main character, whose most meaningful relationship is with the silent Charlie. Robin develops slightly throughout the play as they start to think about what Alex wants.
But as unsatisfactory as the relationship between Alex and Robin is (it’s quite difficult to believe they like each other, much less love each other), it really is new territory for them. We tend not to know how to break the law until someone tells us and relationships are against the law so it’s understandable if they haven’t worked out yet how to be nice to each other.
Oh For ****’* Sake (I’m in Love with You) might
not be the funniest play but it really makes you think – not just about the
world of the play but about real life and what we can do in order to improve,
rather than taking steps back. And maybe those are conversations we all need to
have – maybe it’s even the way of preventing the apocalypse which has clearly
happened in the world of this play.
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