Review: THE BIG O, King's Head Theatre

Lucy can't come. After a lifetime of faking org*sms, she's diagnosed with Anorg*smia, a condition that prevents women from achieving climax. The Big O navigates Lucy's self-loathing and PTSD in an inspirational journey, but, while the topic is loudly and proudly urgent, the play falls short on many levels. This said, it's most definitely not a lost cause. Even though it's all over the place at this stage, Kim Cormack's exploration of female intimacy and the performative side of sex is an intriguing, necessary subject.

Mostly, there's an essential necessity to lean into the foundations of the plot further and abandon most of the surplus material that makes it a two-act show. The text flows easily in the soliloquies, but it's anchored down by a clunky structure with too many superfluous characters. The piece is laced with cheeky comedy, but these lighter moments end up being overplayed in a series of attempts at being risqué. In reality, it's all very prudish.

Vibrators and clitorises are discussed with raunchy girl-talk that creaks against the overlong and redundant therapy session where they keep circling the surface. Cormack fishes for cheap laughs while she should investigate her character's trauma response instead. To accomplish what it sets out to do, the production needs to be tightened and refined. As it is, it's prosaic and trope-heavy; it also gives the impression that it was written to speak out about Anorg*smia rather than tell a story with it at its core. It's issue-led theatre crafted at the expense of its narrative.

Lotte Ruth Johnson directs with arbitrariness and has her actors move only for movement's sake. Jade Dowsett Roberts randomly crouches and kneels during a chat with her friends (Esmee Cook and Lisa Spencer), or meaninglessly switches sides every once in a while with Anna Bernard during a handful of otherwise still therapy appointments. Ultimately, The Big O lacks the hook of a good piece of theatre. Its formulaic ending and, regrettably, unengaging writing make it a sluggish watch.

The genre-hopping and tone-shifting add to the confusion instead of smoothing it over, which is unfortunate. Cormack finally conjures a gorgeous allegory towards the finish line, applying the tale of Baba Yaga and Vasilisa The Brave to Lucy's circumstances. Cook, Spencer, and Adley Lewis swoop in during her epiphanic scenes and regale the audience with the same story Lucy's been reading in one of the books recommended by her psychosexual consultant. It's momentous and epic, but feels out of place. All in all, there's plenty buried inside Cormack's first full-length play. It only requires a dramaturg.

The Big O runs at the King's Head Theatre until 3 June and then goes on tour.

To post a comment, you must register and login.