The Naked Truth

From Dave Simpson, the writer who created the extremely successful Ladies Night, comes The Naked Truth which offers up more intelligence and depth than the saucy title suggests. Although relying heavily on the Loose Women culture of gossip, innuendo and man baiting, this production manages to perfectly balance the delivery of bawdy humour, whilst creating moments of inspiration as each character tackles very real and relevant issues to its mostly female audience.

The play centres around the lives and loves of six women as they all, for very different reasons, attend a pole-dancing class over six months. Each character has their own issue to overcome as they take to the pole and learn the confidence to expose themselves both physically and emotionally.

At first glance Simpson’s characters seem to be rather two-dimensional, fitting in with the over-used stereotypes seen in many a teatime drama. The loudmouth, the posh one, the ditzy one; however this is where the familiarities end. The combination of Simpson’s script and the actresses’ abilities enables the sensitive subjects of domestic violence, body confidence and most notably the Big C to be dealt with while the audience is still reeling from the last crude euphemism.

In terms of performances the duo of Bev (Leanne Jones) and Faith (Alison Young) steals the limelight. Jones gets the best punch lines by far and lights up the stage with her flamboyancy and cutting remarks. However, it is Young’s comic timing and squeaky-voiced delivery that provides the light relief in darker moments. These moments are provided by the character of Sarah (Maureen Nolan), who has breast cancer. The subject is dealt with tentatively; Nolan’s portrayal of Sarah is extremely convincing and is more inspiring than harrowing.

Occasionally the script drifts towards corniness, due to some 'Carry On' style humour and musical intervals between scenes, consisting of inspirational power ballads which date the play. However, The Naked Truth’s underlying charity appeal and uplifting life-lessons could move even the biggest cynic.

What Dave Simpson once again succeeds in doing is producing a great ladies' night out. The show appeals to all ages, despite the sexual references, precisely because it doesn’t try anything fancy. It all feels very inviting and comfortable which is part of its charm - and probably why it is in its fifth successful year.