THE NAKED TRUTH

by Dave Simpson
presented by Theatre Productions
at the Grand Theatre, Lancaster
on 7 September 2007

Reviewed by Keith Walker

It’s A Woman Thing!
I don’t tell jokes but there’s one about a young man who goes to a strip club. He confesses to seeing something he shouldn’t . . . his father! I rather felt like that young man on entering the Grand Theatre auditorium for the first night of Theatre Productions Naked Truth.

The kindly lady who took my ticket smiled and said rather cryptically: “You’re one of the brave are you?” I returned the smiled, mumbled a little at the price of a programme and wondered if I’d made a mistake? The house was teeming with middle aged women with no other male to be seen. Indeed I was told later that women had turned up by the coach load with full houses booked for all performances including the matinee.

Now quite what was the attraction for these ladies in a story about a pole dancing class? Or was it that the cast were composed of half a dozen faded TV soap stars? What became pretty clear over the course of the evening was that the mums minus the dads were there to let their hair down and thoroughly enjoy themselves. Not that there was much actual pole dancing amongst the laughter and tears. Well not until the finale when each of the girls puts on a brief show on the pole.

The Naked Truth is a bitter sweet comedy, which has you guiltily laughing one minute and reaching for the hankie the next. Real women and real lives is the tag line. Well perhaps not quite for it’s very much the fantasy world of TV soaps written by soap writer Dave Simpson. Though maybe real women are turned on by conversations on men, sex, vibrators, Haagan Daz ice cream and men’s electric toothbrushes? Have I been living in a cupboard all these years?

Each lady, and I use the word in its widest sense, attending Gabby’s Wiggle and Giggle pole dancing class has a story to tell including Gabby (Paula Frances) herself, who demonstrates some fair pole dancing skills. Tricia (Joanne Farrell) the vacuous blonde bimbo idolises her Garry until she finds he’s cheated on her with Bev (Lisa Riley). Bev has had more one night stands than hot dinners and is cast as the village bicycle but finds that Gary prefers plumper fare than Tricia.

Faith (Alison Young) is the naive virgin desperately seeking her first sexual experience and the butt of much of the girlie humour from the far more experienced women. Only the older women Rita (Sarah White) who has a pig of a husband and Sarah (Pauline Fleming) show much understanding of her frustration. Sarah discovers she has a reoccurrence of breast cancer and is given only a short time to live.

The language is a little blue at times and some of the miming somewhat suggestive but there’s nothing too near the knuckle, and the ladies keep their clothes on throughout. It is clearly a show for the female gender and not intended to offend (well, not really).

I will admit to rushing to the bar at the interval for a little fresh air to escape the anaesthetising effect of too much cheap perfume, and then into the smoker's paradise outside but apart from that I freely confess to thoroughly enjoying the show. Indeed it seemed a pity that more men were not there as the whole thing was fast moving with many short scenes and on the whole it was very professionally done.

The show ends on a bit of a bang with a pole dancing show of sorts and everyone seemed to have had a thoroughly good time cast included. If a show like this can ensure packed houses perhaps there a lesson to learnt by Footlights and the Grand? Think on’t!

c. Keith A Walker 2007