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No country for old women: Old Ladies - at Finborough Theatre

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The day after seeing The Old Ladies at the Finborough Theatre , I was describing the play to someone in great detail: about three old ladies who lived in a rickety house in southern England in 1935. Based on Hugh Walpole’s novel and adapted by Rodney Ackland, it is the sort of story with enough believability, humour and mild thriller to stick in your mind. Perhaps it is the lure of this dark, forboding tale of a life without money, to be alone and to be old, that makes you feel attracted to this poverty porn. But then again, given the state of the world, the cost of living, an ageing population, or just the fact that it’s a dog-eat-dog world, it might as well be an every little old lady-for-herself, too. It’s a well-acted and staged piece that moves at a brisk pace, so there isn’t much time to think about it too much. And in the intimate (or should that be claustrophobic?) space of the Finborough, there’s nowhere to avert your eyes. Even if you wanted to.  The scene is a grim Cathe...

Somewhere that's green: Potty the Plant at Wiltons Music Hall

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"I'm Potty the Plant," sings a potted plant in this odd little fringe concept of a show. It's hard not to get the tune out of your head, even if the show is brief. It's an earworm for a show that features a worm-like plant as a puppet. And given the show's brevity, running at only an hour, it's hard to get too annoyed by a lack of a coherent story, even if it still seems like the show could use a bit more development (which is underway). It has made its London debut at Wilton's Music Hall.

The premise is that Potty, the plant, lives in the hospital office of Dr Acula (geddit?) and dreams of a life with the cleaning lady Miss Lacey (Lucy Appleton). But Dr Acula might be responsible for why all these children are disappearing while trying to romance Miss Lacey for her family's money that she doesn't have. Three nurses are on the case, trying to solve the mystery. 

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If the show settled on a convincing plot, location and set of characters, it could make a lot more sense. The musical numbers seem to be more about exposition and scene setting than anything else, and to borrow from another quirky musical, Urinetown, when Officer Lockstock tells Sally in the opening number, "You're too young to understand it now, but nothing can kill a show like too much exposition." 

Despite the show's shortcomings, the idea of a gentle plant yearning for a life beyond its pot is an amusing one. Co-writer, director, composer, and Potty Plant performer Baden Burns infuses the character with a sense of timing and sincerity that the rest of the show could benefit from. All Potty needs is a proper adventure. 

Directed by Baden Burns and with musical direction by Zach Burns, Potty The Plant concludes at Wilton's Music Hall on 28 June. It heads off to the Edinburgh Fringe again this summer. 

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