Writer: Ethan Graham Roeder
Director: Charlotte Cattrall
The Bearcat is a new camp comedy by Ethan Graham Roeder, showing the first act of the production as part of Camden Fringe. It is unusual to have a full production of the first act, as opposed to a workshop or rehearsed reading, and the audience is definitely left wanting more after all of the set-up. However, what is shown is highly entertaining.
Inspired by Middleton and Dekker’s Jacobean play, The Roaring Girl, The Bearcat centres around a queer club in small-town America. We follow five friends, including Garrett and Jessie, whose impending wedding reveals that Garret’s father doesn’t actually know they’re dating, and if he did know would not be impressed.
The action is interspersed with songs and drag burlesque numbers. These performances slightly interrupt the action, but they also inject a lot of fun into the production. There is a particularly enjoyable act featuring a giant powder puff. All of the dialogue is underscored by live piano skilfully played by Ewan Mulligan that energises the scenes and keeps things moving along. There is opportunity here for more variety in the musical underscoring, adjusting even further to the mood of the scenes.
Charlotte Cattrall’s direction is tight and builds a crystal-clear tonal world for her actors to live in. Meghan Reign’s scenes race through the dialogue, making it difficult to follow but their drag burlesque performances are charismatic and entertaining. Overall, the cast is strong and believable in their roles. The production is well supported by Emma Cantor’s minimal but realistic set design.
It is difficult to know where the show will take the audience, but there is plenty in place to make for a satisfying second act. If Bearcat comes back in its entirety, it’ll be well worth a trip to find out what happens next.
Runs until 24 August 2025
Camden Fringe runs until 24 August 2024
