FABRIC written by Abi Zakarian is a one woman show that revolves around the themes of female emancipation, everyday sexism and sexual abuse. Although this production addresses some very important issues and hard hitting subjects it feels like it could really benefit from further development.Leah (Nancy Sullivan) is the luckiest girl on Earth. She just got a promotion at her job in a tailor shop. And why wouldn’t a young girl feel happy about this? But the importance of her promotion is soon overtaken by meeting the man of her dreams – Ben. Before we know it, Leah is getting ready to be married to her rich boyfriend wearing the perfect dress. But what seems like a fairy tale gradually turns into a nightmare as Leah begins to realise that after all her husband is not that perfect.
Nancy Sullivan as Leah shows she is a great storyteller and possesses a good emotional range so it is unfortunate that the production lacks clarity and strong vision, both from the director and the writer, leaving Sullivan looking quite lost at times. Zakarian’s poetic language although beautiful lacks consistency. Whilst in the first 30 minutes of the play the heroine of FABRIC appears to be quite a simple London girl there is no explanation for her sudden take into poetic metaphors which can leave one confused and irritated.
Tom O’Brien’s direction concentrates on making Leah into “the girl next door” but I am not sure as to what kind of “next door” we are looking at as FABRIC seems like it is set in a timeless world. Leah dances to vintage music, wears a playsuit and talks like a character from one of Maugham’s novel. Yet she is definitely of the modern world when drinking shots and talking about her best friend. Of course one could say that this artistic choice can highlight the universality of FABRIC but unfortunately this is not the case.
There are some really compelling and harrowing moments in FABRIC that are not for the faint hearted. O’Brien directs those in an unapologetic way knowing that half measures never pay off when talking about themes such as rape and violence.
FABRIC is a production that still seems like a work in progress, nevertheless it is an important piece of theatre which without a doubt should leave many uncomfortable.
In 1973 the satirist Tom Lehrer famously declared satire was obsolete when a warmonger was awarded a Nobel Peace Prize. God knows what he'd make of today's politics. Only this morning the immigrant wife of an anti-immigration, right wing presidential candidate addressed a political convention with words plagiarised from A liberal First Lady. A situation so absurd that you couldn't make it up with any credibility, let alone poke fun at anything so unlikely. In such a climate it's hard for the 1997 musical by Dana P. Rowe and John Demsey, spoofing the sex and drug fuelled rise and fall of a fictional US political dynasty, to pack much of a punch when reality is so much more shocking.