This isn’t a sponsored post.
BrumHour saw The Big O at the invite of the production.
By Becky Kroon twitter.com/BeckyKroon
This production contains sexual content and discussion.
Review: The Big O at Arena Theatre, Wolverhampton
This week, BrumHour visited Arena Theatre in Wolverhampton for a first-act preview plus Q and A of The Big O. Kim Cormack’s original play explores under-researched topics of female sexuality and its external impacts. Playing with the boundaries of humour and discomfort, The Big O is a project that accessibly opens up the discussion on how trauma and social structures can affect a women’s sexual health and identity in a safe yet playful script.
The narrative follows main character Lucy’s (played by Jade Dowsett Roberts) diagnosis of Anorgasmia, the inability to have an orgasm. Through friendships, therapy and self-reflection, Lucy recalls sexual encounters from her past and present and how they have impacted her relationships and personal confidence. With the aim to find the explanation of her Anorgasmia, Robert’s nuanced take on Cormack’s semi-biographical play highlights the complexities of consent and sexuality through her vulnerability.
With a research and development process involving organisations and charities around female sexual health and violence, Cormack’s script tackles common misconceptions and stigmas that are still upheld. An enjoyable part was her love letter to Eve Ensler’s The Vagina Monologues through cast member, Esmée Cook’s charismatic lecture on female anatomy. Cook’s clear and educational performance brings to the forefront on Cormack’s outreaching intentions of her play, highlighting the ignorances of women’s bodies due to the lack of representation through media and educational resources.
Despite the performance exploring sensitive themes around mental health and sexual assault, The Big O also offers frequent belly laughs and relatable content. Watching Lucy and her two friends (played by Esmée Cook and Lisa Spencer) joke about their sexual fantasies and encounters is hilariously grotesque but at the same time fiercely relatable. The relationship between the three characters offers a much-needed comic relief while touching upon necessary discussions.
Overall, the first half of The Big O successfully proves itself as an important educational tool that would greatly benefit young people and sexual health programmes. I am interested in how The Big O will continue to dissect complex issues in an accessible manner through its second half, which I look forward to seeing in its 2023 tour when it stops by the Midlands Arts Centre.
Discover more about The Big O Project here: thebigoproject.org.
