No Spray, No Lay!: Poetry of the Looky Looky Man

Product Information

Here are the cliches of night culture. The girl who won’t listen to her bestie’s advice that she is too good for the boy she is desperately clinging on to. The girl who thinks she is too hot to handle and her frumpy pal who is along to make her look good. The sweaty ravers. And the lightweight who had too much pre-club drink and spends the night slumped in a cubicle. When it comes to accommodation in Scotland, there's a fantastic choice of amazing stays from luxury hotels to glamping getaways. No Hugo Boss Bottled Intense, no, please, please find me another job, please, I can't keep doing this, do I have to keep doing this, really, what have I done to deserve this, what crimes have I committed, what sins have I stumbled through unknowingly and unwittingly?"

The Welsh setting that is an integral part of the play is somewhat inconsistently evoked, but the direction of the piece (by Simpson again) is well considered and cleverly paced. There are undoubtedly some intriguing things about the play – not least the way that the dreaded undertaker who has set his cap at Matti is a definite presence despite remaining offstage. The clubbers burst in and slink out. Abigail Nelson as the super-hysterical Crystaal who is certain she is the DJ’s girlfriend and Hannah Lorimer as her bestie Sahara, who is rather more aware. Nelson and Lorimer feed nicely off each other, and deliver their numbers well.These lavatory attendants, as they are probably officially known, also offer a range of designer fragrances in the belief this may help male guests attract a mate for the night, and expect to be rewarded with a coin or two for their efforts. And they’re also supposed to make sure nobody does Class A drugs in the cubicles – unless you make friends with them in advance and offer them some. Apparently. No Spray No Lay was created by friends Kat Dobell and Lara Dunning after a night out at the ballet, a few wines and a run in with a pervy DJ. Sponsored by Bare Productions it plans to hit the Edinburgh Fringe in 2024. We were invited along to the preview/preparatory run last week in Edinburgh, with almost nine months to go to Fringe there’s bound to be refinements made but for now the cast are shining in this production that really captures the chaotic fun aura of a girls’ night out. It’s clear that there is a lot of love behind this production, from the nostalgia-fueled writing to the all-female presenting cast bringing these characters to life. Same dosage as last time, slight change of venue from the usual nights out to a house party environment. Ended up staying the night. RESULT.

The characters are all brought to life clearly and passionately by the cast, and all got their share of laughs from the audience. But though the vocal performances are uniformly strong, the energy of the performances doesn’t really translate to the choreography of the music, with even the numbers where the extra movement is character relevant not going as far as the other characters’ reactions seem to suggest. They are well drawn in this somewhat minimal, one hour musical, which suffers – partly as a consequence of its brevity – from not having enough of several elements. That said, the maxim of leaving the audience wanting more certainly applies here.The whole piece is great fun, performed with no little gusto and devilment, and oozes potential. There is plenty here to make the prospect of its development and return at EdFringe 2024 a welcome one. Although, when Jane has had enough, Harris really lets go with the musical’s biggest tune, My Time to Fly, which she does in brilliant fashion as Jane comes out of her shell and, with a couple of drinks down her, proves as lecherous as anyone else. Harris works the audience superbly, even getting one of the unsuspecting men up on stage, for what turns out to be the musical’s pivotal sequence which brings the two pairs of girls into proper conflict. best comic lines Aftershave will definitely make women want to fellate you! Dose yourself in it! Feed me pound after pound! It is rare to see performers who can provide genuine and sustained laughter, and ride it without ever succumbing to the temptation to talk across it. The only thing that gets in the way of sozzled bonhomie is the bloke trying to sell you aftershave. Now, the important thing to remember here, is that he's just doing his job and no one should ever be made to feel ashamed of their profession. It's not fun. It's not glamorous and I doubt it pays well, so there's no disrespect intended here at all, rather this is our opportunity, as we see it, to pay tribute to this unsung bastion of the bog, and his unrelenting supply of catchphrases.