With the right tricks, tropes and narratives, can an audience and a self-dubbed romance scholar put together the perfect romantic comedy?
It’s a question asked by Sarah Bradley in her show How To Write A Romcom at the Lantern Theatre. She reckons she has found the formula for the genre, but does she have the formula for a satisfying show?
Bradley presents herself as the perfect romcom heroine. She’s clumsy, just turned 30, and ripe for a romance that will make her foot pop. In the absence of suitable suitors on the apps, she’s turned to creating a PowerPoint show with the heroine modelled in her image. A smart approach – no risk of being stood-up, replaced with the joy of stand-up instead.
We’re offered a multitude of tables and spreadsheets that Bradley has crafted to fully get her geek on, taking hyper-focusing to new heights. From friends to enemies narratives, and heroine archetypes. Romance scholar may be a made-up title, but if there were to be such a thing, Bradley would be a good bet for success.
Together, we craft a love story using audience suggestions collected using an online form. This is a smart way to get past the general awkwardness of trying to summon suggestions from a slightly nervous audience. But it does somewhat spoil the spontaneity of someone suddenly blurting out the word ‘goblin’, when prompted for a personality type without the benefit of thinking time. In this iteration, we’re a small but friendly crowd. We create an only mildly disturbing script proposal about the momager of a child star who develops the hots for a rich Heath Ledger impersonator. Who’d have thought it?
The marketing for this show is on-point. If you want to know the recipe for crafting the perfect romantic comedy, this show seriously delivers. Bradley is a charming and engaging host who holds the space with enthusiastic energy. How To Write A Romcom will no doubt bring joy to fans of the genre, and anyone who appreciates the value of a good spreadsheet.
Reviewed on 10 May 2026.
The Reviews Hub Star Rating
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8
