REVIEW: Perverts by Alice McKee at King’s Head Theatre 20 June – 8 July 2023

‘The script is funny and piquant if occasionally lost in the sound design’ ★★★ ½

I’m not absolutely certain that this was the response Beca Barton's character Katie was looking for, being, as she was, fiercely Queer and definitely on the dom end of sub-dom, but this elderly straight geezer (me) thought she was rather sweet. Alice McKee has scripted an exploration of sex-club culture, as seen through the cynical seen-it-all gaze of Katie. Katie is a regular at this club, although on this occasion she seems to have mislaid the exit, but it is littered with her exes, her friends, her workmates. Where can a girl find a complete hot stranger to go home with in those conditions? It’s a puzzle.

Beca Barton as Katie, navigates a difficult course between being hard-boiled and simultaneously soft-centred. Katy claims she doesn’t want any relationship to last beyond next day’s breakfast, she is secretly lusting after cuddles and cocoa, and a person to call her own.  This dilemma is presented with jaggedy bursts of light and sound, and some out of sync video, making the watching experience a bit uncomfortable, which was surely the intention. The ‘flashing lights’ warning outside the theatre is apposite.

The script is funny and piquant if occasionally lost in the sound design, Beca Barton (as Katie) is aggressively charming and ultimately sympathetic, the underlying exploration of casual sex and relationships is engaging.

Perverts at King’s Head Theatre 20 June – 8 July 2023

Box Office: https://kingsheadtheatre.com/whats-on/perverts

CAST & CREATIVES

Katie | Beca Barton

Writer | Alice McKee

Director | Sarah Fox

Composer | Helen Walpole

Lighting Designer | Han Sayles

Mixing & Mastering | Henry Dabrowski

Stage Manager | Gwenan Bain

Producing Company | Best Fear Productions

Review by Chris Lilly