Daddy Issues by Lewis Cornay. Seven Dials Playhouse, 1A Tower Street, London WC2 to 19 November 2022. 3***. William Russell
Imi is having a bad day. Her dog has died, she is telling the world about it on Instagram, knocking back the port and grieving for her father who committed suicide. Bebe Cave gives a strong performance in this one character monologue come play - she certainly holds the audience's attention, but one is either moved by Imi's plight or left simply admiring the actress's skills and for me at least it was the latter. Mental illness, and Imi is in a pretty bad way, is a tricky topic to turn into drama and Cornay hasn't quite accomplished it - although others disagree. Director Jane Moriarty has kept the action moving at the necessary speed helped by an effective set from Andrew Exeter which somehow defines Imi's world with the posters on the wall, the homage to Cliff Richard - a surprising idol for an Instagram babe to say the least - and its general clutter of a life in chaos. She tells us about her sex life - the father fixation seems to have led her to seeking out older, even old men, about her dog, and the voices of father and grandfather intrude into her world although they seem to have nothing much to say. The balance between the funny side of it all - and Imi is funny - and the mental state she is in really never quite works. But Cave is worth watching.
Bebe Cave: Imi.
Director: Jane Moriarty.
Set & Lighting Designer: Andrew Exeter.
Sound Design: Christopher Reid.
Costume Design: Sophia Pardon.
Video Design: Lewis Den Hartog.
Production Photograph: Helen Murray.