SEX, DRUGS AND HAIRY BUM HOLES - REVIEW

Written, directed, produced, and performed by Danielle Scott, Sex, Drugs and Hairy Bum Holes is a one-woman dark comedy.

Candy works hard but she plays harder. She’s starting to get fed up with going out every night, meeting sleazy men online and being perpetually hungover at work. She meets this new man who seems to be living a lavish lifestyle, offering her a holiday to Thailand on their second date, she falls into this intense relationship ignoring all of the glaring red flags.

There is no denying that Scott does a good job of bringing the various characters to life through her excellent use of accents. However there is a lack of consistency with how she embodies these characters; there are times when she changes position to go in and out of the characters and Candy in conversation, and times when suddenly another character is talking and there is no indication that she has switched to them. Whilst this is a classic theatre trope for one-person shows, the delivery of the array of characters has to be sleek in order to effectively create their presence on stage; unfortunately, at times the delivery of these characters felt messy and incoherent.

Whilst there are definitely some funny moments in the play, a lot of the humour doesn’t quite land with the audience. At times the delivery of the dialogue is lost in mumbles or throw-away lines, and the timeline is not clear. When the play takes a more serious turn, it is hard to have empathy for the character, due to our lack of emotional connection to her.

Scott is a bold and confident actor, who isn’t afraid of being vulnerable on stage, acting out orgasms and sex scenes on her own. However, in 2023 the play doesn’t feel particularly raunchy or dark. The piece touches on domestic abuse but it doesn’t feel either harrowing or empowering. This brings up the question: What is the purpose of this play? The only reference to a hairy bum hole is when Candy is shaming a sex worker. From the title we assume this is going to be an empowering feminist piece, however, I can’t help but feel it ended up delivering the opposite.

Sex, Drugs and Hairy Bum Holes is a promising title for a dark comedy, and whilst it does deliver some funny moments, I think the show would benefit from some restructuring and refining to elevate it to where it needs to be.

{🎟 AD – PR invite – Tickets were gifted in exchange for an honest review}

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