Writers: Belle Bao and Zhiyuan Jiang
Director: Belle Bao
If there’s one thing that Call The Midwife has taught us, specifically the male viewers, is that women all experience pregnancy differently; not all women will suffer from morning sickness and only some will be tormented by bleeding gums. The Pudding Club, however, suggests that pregnancy is an awful experience if Jane’s story is anything to go by. Sandwiched between some madcap games, Jane’s narrative is oddly structured.
Jane is up for promotion, that is until her boss discovers that she is pregnant. Her husband no longer wants to have sex with her as he’s afraid that he’ll hurt the baby. Jane’s own mother regretfully confesses that she often wonders what life would have been like if she hadn’t had Jane. And it only gets worse for poor Jane.
Fortunately, this is only half the show. The other half involves audience participation as the crowd is divided into two teams. While it seems as if every show at this year’s VAULT Festival will include some element of a game-show format, our hosts, the affable doctor and the delightful Plan B, are thoroughly engaging. The fact that they are both a little disorganised makes their roles even more entertaining as they call on volunteers to play charades or Pictionary, the answers of which are all connected to pregnancy in some way.
Our hosts also say that the scores of each team will determine Jane’s narrative, but this seems very unlikely, especially in the early sections where one lucky member of the audience gets the chance to roll a giant inflatable dice. But it’s pretty clear – and frustratingly patronising – that whatever number is rolled will make no difference to Jane’s tale of woe. However, if there is the possibility that Jane’s story could be more positive, it’s a direction that the team should decide to take.
There’s not enough material to fill up the full 60 minutes and so the three actors ( Ally Ibach, Jaimee Aislyn de Witt and Kerrica Kendall) waste time by skipping along to catchy electronic music, redolent of early arcade games. A rather pointless film, its meaning anyone’s guess, fills up another few minutes.
There’s a lot of charm in this otherwise ramshackle show. The team certainly have talent and they certainly have ideas but, at the moment, the bun in the oven isn’t quite ready.
Runs until 27 January 2023
