Oldham Coliseum Theatre, Oldham – until 2nd July 2022
Review by Rebecca Hampson
5*****
Written by Alphamum Production, a new female led production company created by Joann Condon and Leonie Rachel, Little Boxes is a one woman show staring Joann Condon taking the audience on a journey through Joann’s life and the ‘boxes’ that society and she herself has placed herself in. The show explores the importance of the Arts, the importance of hopes and dreams and the importance of allowing yourself to ‘be me’.
Throughout the performance Joann picks up a variety of cardboard boxes which differ in shape and size, and all represent different social categorisations that have been placed upon Joann in her life so far. These boxes represent different stages of her life and show her growth and development through life.
The boxes offer moments of joy, passion and laughter but also offer moments of sadness and grief. As an audience we a thrust from moments of laughter to moments of tears as we experience Joann’s raw emotion and empathise and relate to the struggles of being a woman.
A poignant moment within the play was when Joann spoke about how Drama gave her hope during the grief of losing her father. The realisation of how Drama gave her freedom to be someone, anyone, but herself for a while was a feeling I resonated with and reminded me why I also fell in love with Drama.
Joann was spectacular in this piece, and you could clearly see the real emotion and passion that radiated across the stage. The staging, sound and lighting beautifully complemented the piece and provided moments of comic relief after emotional scenes. I particularly enjoyed the used of the song ‘Jump’ which encouraged audience participation and lifted the spirts of everyone in the room.
I left the theatre today conscious of the boxes I put myself into and how I may make my own ‘me’ box bigger. Great theatre makes us think and I am particularly grateful to Little Box for such an inspiring piece of theatre.
This is not a show to miss so please look out for it as it will be touring in Buxton from 11th July to 14th July!