Devised by: Penny Drop Productions
Aggressive male behaviours, the endless requirements to succeed, the rapid pace of modern life and the continual need to make life look easy are just some of the themes that cross through Penny Drop Productions’ devised comedy Lady’s Fingers which arrives at the Hen and Chickens Theatre for just two performances. A 60-minute collection of sketches within an overarching narrative, there is much to take away from this blend of physical comedy and clowning performed by Holly Bancroft, Alice Bebber and Ella Hakin whose characters discover the possibility of a more sedate and fulfilling life.
The concept is a relatively simple one – three people seemingly trapped in a room playing out a number of scenarios – but who these people are, and their meaning, is open to interpretation. At face value, much of the characterisation is built around three apparently male personas, hard-working and hard-partying city boys who roar and swagger as they answer work emails with inappropriate sexist aggression, communicate via sports metaphors and pull back from any genuine displays of emotion.
So there is a commentary here about patriarchal narratives of working life and measures of its success, the pressure to play along and the exaggerated posturing of modern masculinity that, despite its emptiness, still holds sway. Some of that is captured in a well-managed skit about three male colleagues in financial services pulling an all-nighter to complete a presentation, told like an extreme war story as the battle-hardened men defeat Excel and emerge victorious into the dawn.
But as the pressure increases, the life of the characters starts to disintegrate, interrupted by the story of Peter Pan, with a nice line about boys being allowed to play forever while girls have to go home and grow up. It reorientates Lady’s Fingers though and the latter part of the show presents the central characters now as children learning about life, picking up on some earlier sketches listing their skills and increasingly disconcerted by the outside world.
That strand of the show feels less developed, however, the role of the neighbour they observe through the window not quite delivering a clear purpose, although the idea of a disruptive external influence has absurdist potential. The possibility of a calmer life built around the seasons and self-sufficiency is there but becomes muddled with an idea about witches that doesn’t develop, and the delivery of plant-based gifts left on the doorstep, so this needs better integration with the play’s other themes.
There are some innovative and very funny gags in here including a lesson on how to drink wine properly involving some pouches of Capri Sun and a very physical interpretation of ‘going on a bender.’ Lady’s Fingers is entertaining, Bancroft, Bebber and Hakin are charismatic performers, and they never lose the attention of the audience in a show that blends pure silliness with a more emotional connection to the characters as it unfolds.
Reviewed on 24 February 2025
