Formation Festival: Straight Outta Saughton (7-8 July)

“Charming”

Straight Outta Saughton presents the unlikely but intriguing scenario of two recently released inmates (and cellmates) from HMP Edinburgh banding together to perform as drag queens, having struggled to find other employment. The senior, and more confident of the two, Peter (Callum Thomson) is old hat and knows his way around a wig and a pair of heels, but his younger (and very vocally heterosexual) counterpart Dave (Greg Sives) is most certainly not in his comfort zone, setting up a potentially juicy 45 minutes of real-time action before the two must take to the stage and lip-synch for their living.

Katy Nixon’s script is charming throughout, setting up a very believable situation, peppered with relevant and laugh-out-loud witticisms. It teases out revelations about each character at a good pace, setting up a fair amount of twists and turns to maintain interest.

What’s missing though is a real sense of narrative drive and urgency to keep the action moving and create more dynamics within the piece. While director Deborah Whyte does well to make the most of the small performance space and create different levels throughout, it does sometimes feel a little flat and laboured. The action often comes across as very “blocked” and unnatural, while it’s disappointing not to see more made of the make-up makeover, which feels a bit rushed and underutilised, both artistically and metaphorically.

It’s the actors who really make this piece shine though. Thomson is a natural on the stage, and commanding in his portrayal of the flamboyant Peter. He also shows great emotional range when opening up about his more personal life and demonstrates great dexterity throughout. Sives is more subtle as the reluctant Dave, but every inch believable in his frustrations and discomfort about the situation he finds himself in. The pair have great chemistry together and I could easily watch them for longer.

There’s definitely something here, that with a bit more workshopping could become a really gripping play. Still, it’s a very enjoyable production as it is, and I hope we see more of it in the future.