Book and Lyrics: Joe Wiltshire Smith
Music: Sam Wells
Director: Jordan Scott Turner
#fit is a lightly satirical musical about the chaos and pressures of modern life, poking fun at the online social influencing world. At a fast-paced 70 minutes, this pared-down production is an entertaining evening with songs and music taking precedence over design and plot. Although there are some moments of biting reality and a few unexpected turns of events to keep the story moving.
Leanne (Megan Jobling) works the telephones for a crisis centre, but her passion is online as she strives to become a social media influencer. Breaking into the world of the beautiful and the popular, however, is not straightforward. Postings, sponsors, ‘subs’ and revenue drive this cut-throat reality. Not everyone has what it takes to fit in. On the surface, Leanne is seemingly peppy and positive, but her no-nonsense attitude hides a deeper sadness.
She has with her at all times Reggie, her cat. When a chance meeting with queen influencer Poppy (Dev Joshi) doesn’t turn out well, this leads to misfortune for Reggie and a surreal journey for Leanne as she crashes unwittingly into the darker underbelly of grief, and of the social networking community.
At first, not all songs immediately blend with the story, and we struggle to see the real world of this musical. The black box is empty of set and costume (apart from Tom Holt’s blingy canary-yellow outfit). Not unusual for a fringe festival, but a missed opportunity to play with space. The band feels too tucked away above the audience, and although Tamsin Lynes’s choreography adds some texture there is an opportunity to be more creative with staging.
In creating a satirical world the cast are in safe hands, and this is down to Joe Wiltshire Smith and Sam Wells (billed as Wiltshire & Wells). Their opening number sets the tone for an evening of witty satirical jibes, with lyrics such as ‘You can just be famous for being famous’ and referring to ‘the light that shines from your anus’. The sound is muffled at times and it’s difficult to catch all the lyrics – a real shame- but this is likely due to the mic technology and not the performers.
Megan Jobling as Leanne is sensational. With her comic timing and magnificently rich, resonating voice we cannot help but feel for her when she sings the title song Fit demanding to know ‘what makes you better than all of us’? Dev Joshi beautifully creates a moving and believable Poppy, hiding her vulnerability behind a haze of perfection. When Joshi and Jobling sing their duet Her Voice the deeper themes of isolation, distrust, and secrets are revealed.
There are moments of humour with Alex White as the bullying, power-hungry Gabe, who unfortunately for Poppy is her other half. He spends most of his time hanging out with his loud, poser mate Bukkake John, performed with glee by Tom Holt. Gabe has just returned from travelling China and Nepal where he ‘teaches the monks how to be’, as performed in a very funny solo with the talented White on guitar. An airport-purchased Buddha statue captures all that Gabe thinks of Poppy, and for all her influence, she cannot seem to escape his clutches, that is until she brings Leanne home to darker circumstances.
Beneath the satire is another relevant story pushing to be heard, one of celebrity abuse of power captured in the musical number Purgatory, where enormous cardboard masks of Ghislaine Maxwell and Jimmy Savile amongst others dance and sing. Here the wit has a well-pitched sting. Not all moments however work hard enough to explore subtle undertones. Leanne’s crisis phone calls act merely as plot holders, with character situations not given enough weight. However, the unexpected catty twist in this tale joyfully explores existential angst and this success sits with Reggie and the playful Roger Parkins who creates his afterlife.
Reviewed on 24 August 2023
Camden Fringe runs until 27 August 2023
The Reviews Hub Score
Satirical, catty and fun
