Run Girl Run

Run Girl Run is the latest production by award-winning independent company Grit Theatre. Back in 2010, their production Us was the winner of Best Performance at the Melbourne Fringe Festival and then went on to receive two Green Room Awards: Best Independent Production and Best Independent Ensemble.

For Melbourne Fringe Festival 2013, Grit set out to examine contemporary Australia’s relationship with gender, through a two-part narrative. Three actors, Thomas Browne, Laura Hughes and Clare Phillips, take on over-exaggerated signifiers of male gender in the first part, before expressing female characteristics in the second half.

Grit Theatre is a collaborative group of straight and queer artists who enjoy questioning gender and exploring its boundaries; apparently for this performance they interviewed men, women, gender neutral and gender-queer individuals across Australia. On a pamphlet given to audience members as they enter the intimate performance space, Grit Theatre states that in their search to answer their questions: ‘how do I be a man?’ and ‘how do I be a woman?’ it was clear that everyone would be coming up with their own unique answers. Their decision was then to shift their focus upon their  ‘own personal relationship with gender expression’.

But this gender experimentation seems incredibly limited in Run Girl Run. The show does deliver on its promise of high energy and high camp performance, but is far from groundbreaking in its exploration of gender, and lacks a sincere depiction of the female gender.

The three actors emerge almost naked at the beginnings of each part of the performance, before putting on layers of gendered clothing. As men, they wear boadshorts, boots and singlets—while drinking beer, protein shakes and applying deodorant—and they discuss football, work, flatscreens and relationships. As women, they wear short pink dresses, platinum blonde wigs and strappy shoes and heels—while drinking champagne, slathering on make-up, tanning lotion and putting on bangles—and they barely talk; the only memorable dialogue is about facelifts. Of course, while this is happening the pace of the treadmills steadily increases over time.

The performers’ interpretation of gender seems to be constructed purely for comical effect. Embodying male expression, the dialogue is highly conversational and almost seems improvised—you could hear the same words from your friends. In the final part of Run Girl Run, the performers’ depiction of female gender expression is extremely stereotypical and shallow.

If this performance didn’t have treadmills, it would be considered a theatre workshop rather than a polished piece of theatre. Perhaps this performance would better received as a stand up comedy in which audience members could participate.

Rating: 2 ½ stars out of 5

Melbourne Fringe Festival
www.melbournefringe.com.au
18 September – 6 October