Fox – Greenwich Theatre, London

Writer: Katie Guicciardi

Director: Lisa Cagnacci

Motherhood begins with a bustle of excitement – friends and family clambering to see the new-born, offering to help or give assistance wherever needed. But as time passes, the freshness dies out and reality sinks in, leaving mum and baby on their own to navigate the world and begin on their lifelong commitment to each-other.

Sitting alone at home each day writer and performer Katie Guicciardi’s unnamed character tends to her baby, constantly feeding, changing and generally being in awe of the life she has created. She becomes fixated on the homeless man that has began sleeping on the wall outside of her flat, berating herself for not doing more, curious at how he has wound up there and determined to lend a hand in some way. But as the months go by, her intrigue turns to frustration – why is he getting so much help and attention while she’s stuck at home? Why does she feel like she’s close to breaking point when she should feel the happiest she’s ever been? Her slow spiral into postnatal depression is well portrayed by Guicciardi, visibly getting wearier with each scene, clearly reflecting on each of her thoughts and feelings with poignant monologues.

While both homelessness and motherhood challenges are big talking points that are more than worthy of a platform to unpin the various issues that encompass them, cramming both concurrently into a 50 minute long show means that at points, the messages are watered down rather than amplified. Guicciardi’s experience of motherhood is honest, raw and insightful, with genuine emotion that is evident throughout. Her insights into homelessness on the other hand are detached and, at points, somewhat patronising. While the thin thread of being isolated within society, as well as the help that is given and taken by various people links both issues, they still don’t fully come together to create an interwoven narrative.

While Guicciardi does a fantastic job of highlighting the repetitiveness that motherhood can bring, it also means that the storyline itself has an air of mundane monotony, with an ongoing cycle of observing the man outside, reflecting on motherhood, repeat. While an aspect of continuity is required for this subject matter, Lisa Cagnacci’s direction could be better executed to allow for a change in pace or style, to avoid the tedium that occasionally seeps through.

Runs until 2 March 2023