MOTHS, MOTHERS AND DEAD PEOPLE Camden Fringe, The Rose and Crown, 8 - 12 August 2024

“A movingly personal concept but the show lacks style and substance.” ★★☆☆☆

It is difficult to review a piece that has been created with love and grief in mind but that is the beauty of the Camden Fringe Festival, it is a space that will allow young artists to experiment with their craft, no matter how personal the content may be, in a supportive environment. Sometimes this space will highlight a gem but sadly this was not the case (not just yet anyway) with Moths, Mothers and Dead People written and performed by Ellie Drayton.

Unfortunately, the show was a victim of too much experimentation. The piece is supposed to be a take on your traditional monologue style play with stand-up comedy interspersed throughout that has been designed to be “hideous.” The intention to use comedy is the right one but Ellie seems to have missed a key point of stand-up, the audience. Stand-up comedy is different from a monologue as the comedian sees the audience and shares their personal world with them, you can’t shy away from the odd bit of interaction. Ellie’s “stand-up” moments fall short as there is no engagement, the few delightful moments appear when Ellie allows herself to be freer, an example being her attempt to shove three Twix bars in her mouth at once.

The story is imaginative and there is a lovely range of characters which Ellie tries to portray, some being reasonably successful but others such as “The Moth King” fall short. Ellie does not use her full vocal range and fails to give each character their own characteristics, which is a shame as she has an excellent range of facial expressions that I think need to be utilised further. I could not help but hope “The Moth King” would end up being a bit of a stoner, given his defining character costume of red sunglasses. Instead, the character comes across as a bit middle-class and beige. An interpretation that is at odds with the look, the decision could be intentional and perhaps a reflection on certain political figures we know today, if this is the case then the character needs refining.

The moments where Ellie allows a glimpse of her grief don’t have the impact they deserve as we only get the occasional snapshot and with the comedy not taking us to a highpoint, no drop of pain manages to have an impact.

There is a basic understanding of comedy and its natural marriage with tragedy, but neither has been explored strongly enough to leave the audience with any impression of how to feel. However, it is exciting to consider where this show will end up with time and revisions.

Writer/performer: Ellie Drayton

Director: Sayyid Aki

Co-Producer: Flora Davies

Instagram: @mothsshow