Slippery When Wet at Barons Court Theatre

SLIPPERY WHEN WET
By Leanne Devlin

At Barons Court Theatre
22 August – 2 September 2023 7:30pm & 9.30pm

“I didn’t expect Love to show up at my dreary new job. Clean-up in aisle four!”

Slippery When Wet follows the journey of an aspiring actor who, having returned to her hometown to work in a supermarket, is forced to face her complicated relationship with her hometown when she falls madly in love with a colleague. We follow this bawdy young woman through drunken nights, embarrassing encounters and ‘bad feminism’, as she debates abandoning her theatrical city dreams for Love (with a capital L).

Slippery When Wet, written and performed by Leanne Devlin (Ireland), and directed by Emma Copland (UK), premiers at Barons Court Theatre as part of their 2023 Summer Season. Drawing on personal experiences of small towns, big dreams and being a bad feminist, Slippery When Wet, mocks the multiplicity of expectations we dump on our young people and tensions between the fantasies we sell them and the realities of life. 

Told through eclectic story-telling theatre, this one-woman show is a bawdy, heart-breaking and hilarious exploration of youthful passions and societal cynicism. Described after a rehearsed reading as ‘cheeky and irreverent’, and with a ‘gorgeously wry sense of humour throughout’, Slippery When Wet is a reminder that you can only really jump into love when you have both your feet firmly planted on the ground.

“I am so excited to be bringing Slippery When Wet to London this summer,” says director Emma Copland. “It’s such a fun and cutting piece, perfect for a summer evening. It really explores the tension between society’s goals for us and our own dreams, but in a hilariously knowing way. We’ve set out to test the genuine strength it takes to know yourself against a backdrop of the youthful naivete of Leanne’s character.”

Audience feedback from Slippery When Wet short version at No Touching Theatre Festival 2020:

"Give me this again and again and again." -  Aoibheann McCann

"Leanne Devlin is a national treasure." -  Holly Hannaway

"This is a DIAMOND." -  Ciara Elizabeth Smyth