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Ruthless People: Ruthless - Arches Lane Theatre

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What is it about the Madoff’s that writers can’t resist writing about? Sure, it may have been the largest Ponzi scheme to collapse (so far), but there isn’t much more to explore. Or is there? In Ruthless by writer Roger Steinmann, Ruth Madoff is imagined as a wronged, gun-toting woman anchored in the past while trying to move on with her life. It’s not entirely successful but a fascinating look at life and wig choices, It’s currently playing at the theatre now known as the Arches Lane Theatre in Battersea. Ruth Madoff, played by Emily Swain, is here wearing a wig. I thought it was an odd look until I reviewed how closely it matched the photo of her interview in  The New York Times .  Typically, it’s the sort of wig you might see worn by Ladies on a night out in central London, not someone who once had over $80m in assets. With Bernie in Jail and both her sons now dead - one by suicide and one due to cancer, she is setting a table for the men who have left her. And ordering p...

Chance encounters girlfriends take: Blind Date

It is unusual to be raving about a show that nobody else will see, but Blind Date which is having a limited seven week run at the Charing Cross theatre, is an improvised show that is original and funny where no show will be quite the same, but where each show no doubt shows the magic, sweetness and humanity that arises from chance encounters.

Keeping it all together is Rebecca Northan as the optimistic Mimi, who finds herself stood up on her blind date. Rather than let that get her down, she turns to the audience to help her out. She wears a clown nose, speaks with a French accent and has a great set of legs. What then happens for the next ninety minutes is a masterclass in improvisation and working with the audience.

Northan, who hails from Canada, and her show has won several awards. She is the recipient of two 2012 Canadian Comedy Awards for "Best Female Improviser" and "Best Comedic Play" for Blind Date, a winner of the Montreal Just For Laughs Comedy Award for Improvisation, and a 2010 Betty Mitchell Award (Calgary) for "Best Female in a Musical or Comedy."


Charing Cross Theatre, is transformed into a lively little cabaret scene with red curtains and sexy music. Before the show begins, Northan is talking to members of the audience along with her fellow cast members. For reasons that will become clear later, this plays an important part in the show. Her supporting cast also work to keep the show finely balanced as scenes move and you never quite can tell whether what things are happening are real or not.

Her date the night I dropped in was a young man called "Barty" who already drew attention to himself before the show as he was dressed in gym gear. It transpires that he rode his bike to the theatre but was there with his girlfriend. He became the surprising hero of the show despite interjections from other men in the audience.

Whether it is comedy, stand up, a social experiment or a combination of all, it is a fascinating, sweet and funny night at the theatre. If you have a boyfriend, you should take him along to the show, but save the surprise...

After the show it was left to @Johnnyfoxlondon and I to decipher what we have seen in an Audioboo. At the time I think we were not so sure... But I think both of us want to go back and see it again...
listen to ‘Blind Date Boo’ on Audioboo

If you want to delve more into the background of the show and the origin of her clown character Mimi, there is an interview with her on Canadian radio below. 

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