Rebecca Crankshaw is riveting. She holds the audience in the palm of her hand as Tracey treating us to her memories, thoughts and life story as she potters about in her kitchen cooking Christmas dinner for 21 noisy and demanding people who can be heard in the next room.

This beautifully written, scrupulously observed play is very funny but it’s also pretty poignant as we gradually learn why the in-your-face Tracey is married to a fat prick (“Actually” she says wryly. “That’s not fair. He isn’t fat”) with a ghastly vegan mother who loves to lay down the law. Then there’s Jackie, the friend who’s been beside her since she was nine years old. Usually Jackie would be there at Christmas having a laugh with her in the kitchen and we eventually realise why she isn’t – and that isn’t funny at all.

It’s a powerful  60-minute, one-hander, not least because Crankshaw’s timing and voice work are so accomplished. She treats us to a hilarious account of attending and hilariously subverting a séance she once attended with her mother in law and Jackie. Then there’s meeting and being captivated by a glamorous American named Gregory – and the dashed dream which follows. Tracey is very witty too about how to “bag a bloke” although Crankshaw plays this with a nuanced sense of brittleness. It’s a very charismatic performance.

The play, written by two men, is partly a feminist crie-de-coeur. Tracey really doesn’t deserve to be a solitary kitchen skivvy single-handedly fulfilling the complex dietary needs of 21 people. When the rebellion finally comes it’s such a relief that you want to cheer.

Because the Bridge House studio space is small and simple, sets there are usually quite basic but directors Luke Adamson and Joe Lindoe have really pushed the boat out for this one. A fitted kitchen, including a fridge and lots of cupboards hugs two sides of the square space so that Crankshaw can work with real food and at one point we get steam – all pretty convincing although it must be quite complicated to stage manage.

I did wonder, though, about the food waste but at the end Crankshaw speaks, as herself, to the audience and explains that there’s a collection for a local food bank to offset this. Nice touch and people seemed to be donating quite generously after the performance I saw.

First published by Sardines: https://www.sardinesmagazine.co.uk/review/21-round-for-christmas/