An Outstanding performance from Growing Theatre

Posted on 16th June 2025

Asked why we go to the theatre and most would say it’s to be entertained, but sometimes it’s more complex than that. Ten years ago I saw the play Factor 9 which highlighted the scandal of HIV infected blood transfusions, something I was barely aware of at the time. I can’t say I had a good time, but it remains a powerful memory long after the whimsy of countless comedies and musicals have drifted from my mind.

Live performance has the unequalled power to drive home a message, and the lessons learned from Joy Beresford-Frye’s Out & Out will similarly stay with me for a very long time. I, naively, had simply no idea that up until the year 2000, females in the army who happened to attracted to other females were not only prohibited from serving their country, they were hounded out of the forces with a merciless cruelty that defies understanding. This extraordinarily repugnant attitude was matched by the zeal with which these individuals were rooted out, persecuted and discarded.  Abi Tacon and Naomi Cunningham played a series of characters, presumably drawn from life, who were caught up in the army’s bizarre mission to rid the institution of soldiers whose sexual orientation was deemed unacceptable. Track record, exemplary conduct and active service, we learned, all counted for nothing.

The facts of the matter were shocking enough, but director Danny O’Hara nonetheless injected theatrical flourishes aplenty into the play’s compact running time. More a series of vignettes than a developed narrative, the action was broken up by filmed inserts, stylised movement and fourth wall busting agitprop. Not all of it worked – ironically the most effective parts were the simple monologues – but the overall impression was of an ambitious new company bravely tackling a serious topic head on in a bold and innovative fashion. I look forward to Growing Theatre’s future productions appearing later in the year at the Corn Hall.