If you asked me to go to a comedy show about a woman whose boyfriend cheated on her, I’d probably say no.
It sounds boring, it’s an overdone topic and it won’t be engaging.
Oh how WRONG I WAS.
Prune. Oh Prune. Prune is going through a nasty breakup. Prune’s boyfriend cheated on her with webcam girls. Prune is wearing black heels, a skin-tight purple lycra suit, stuffed to the brim with what I would guess are balloons or pillows, with matching purple face paint.
The character of Prune, created by Serena Flynn, is not someone you can avoid interacting with. The intimate venue (The Burrow at the Warren) leaves no room to escape – if she wants to involve you in the show, she will. Whether that’s going on stage to make a speech at her imaginary wedding, or explaining what you think love means. Nothing you say or do will throw her off – Prune will always have an answer, a comment, a joke.
We see Prune meet her boyfriend, imagine their life together, discover his infidelity and more. The show goes on twists and turns that I dare you to try and predict. For example, when Prune fills a rabbit’s water bottle with gin and tonic and passes it around the audience, I did not expect it to be ACTUAL gin and tonic. Or that people would actually drink from it. I’m not ill yet but I definitely shared spit with half of that room…
If you aren’t up for audience participation, this isn’t the show for you. It’s almost excruciatingly intimate but in the best way possible. I laughed, I cringed, I nearly cried, and I won’t forget watching Prune order members of the audience to carry her out when the show finished.
Her weirdness is contagious and I firmly believe we should all be more Prune. If you get a chance to see the show, I absolutely recommend you do. As for sharing the rabbit water bottle with a room of strangers, I’ll let you know if I’ve caught anything.
Sorry about the crappy iPhone quality photos – my phone didn’t cope well!
