Sara Pascoe: The Musical, Assembly George Square, Edinburgh
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.“It’s actually about adolescence and images of women in the media – you’ve been punked.” It’s not a spoiler to give away the ending of Sara Pascoe’s third Edinburgh show, as it quickly becomes evident that the musical notion is slight at best.
While there are songs and some musical phrases in between, their purpose is to highlight the passages of spoken word that make up ‘Sara Pascoe: The Musical’ - a fact-meets-fantasy monologue about her teenage years. It's a return to the form of her 2010 debut show and a merciful rejection of last year’s whimsy overload.
While we can be fairly sure that the “30 +1 year old”, dressed in a subtle homage to her school uniform, had to move schools and had her heart broken before she was 18, we can be equally assured that she did not invent Revels or “onions that cry when we cut ourselves”.
Best known on the small screen for playing Coco Lomax in ‘Twenty Twelve’ and for roles in ‘Free Agents’ and ‘Campus’, Pascoe’s live work highlights her fertile imagination. She is capable of gymnastic leaps from one concept twist to another without losing sense or her thread and has a keen ear for subverting her own guiding principles: “I didn’t get both ears pierced because I don’t like to prescribe to gender roles, and because it hurt.”
She is particularly unhappy with the way females are portrayed in the media. “Women getting dressed” is the catch-all title she gives to women's magazines. Body issues are dealt with in a nuanced way during tales of her teenage years though a return to the theme at the end for material including a proposed overhaul of Page 3 ( boobs are ok if moobs are also given space) seems a bit schlocky, tacked on for the sake of a resonant conclusion.
It is also a little disappointing that there are not more musical interludes in the show as, what few there are, are skilful. In one, about falling in love at 16, she sings, “I wish I could get inside your body and be one of your organs.” She certainly touches the funny bone in this show.
Until 27 August, 0131 623 3030
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments