Anna Burnside reviews a disappointing offering from A Play, a Pie and a Pint.
Amber is an influencer who wants a big ‘Insta-tastic’ wedding to increase her brand partnerships. Gary is an accountant with an extremely long name who wants an easy life with Amber. Lady V is a barmaid who lives in a castle with an apple orchard.
The first two characters in this kind-of love triangle offer strong material for drama and satire. Influencer culture is hard to parody—it pretty much does that for itself—but there’s plenty to say about what people are willing to do in front of a ring light in return for free face packs: men who wear cropped trousers and appear in their partners’ cringey TikToks are always good for a laugh.
The wedding industry is also rich pickings, with its content creators, first dance choreographers and llama wranglers.
Bridezilla and the Orchard of Sin, however, explores none of these fruitful areas. There was a hopeful moment when it became clear that Lady V was some kind of satanic orchard keeper and Gary might have come to a Proustian pact over the deluxe wedding package.
Annoyingly, this was not developed beyond a brief ‘Devil Wears Marigolds’ interlude.
Instead, a shonky plot planted clunkily in at the beginning burst into flower at the end to tie up a thin and unsatisfying conclusion. Director Becky Hope-Palmer failed to add nuance or texture. Santino Smith’s response to the incoherent script was heavy-handed physical comedy. Chiara Sparkes was as self-obsessed and annoying as a real-life influencer but failed to take her character beyond this caricature. Giga Gray’s Lady V was an equally underdeveloped busty barmaid from the Benny Hill era.
Not one of PPP’s finest 50 minutes.
Bridezilla and the Orchard of Sin performs at A Play, a Pie and a Pint until April 27, 2024. It tours to Macrobert Arts Centre in Stirling from April 30-May 1, 2024.
Photo by Tommy Ga-Ken Wan.
RSS