Everyone's Worried About Eve | Bread and Roses Theatre

How should people face excruciating problems? Everyone’s Worried About Eve, a one-woman show written and performed by Alex John, attempts to discuss this in a very original way, but sadly, it doesn’t quite reach the potential that lies within the idea.

It’s Eve’s birthday, and yet, she’s not overjoyed by the day. In fact, not only this day, but she has hidden herself away in her imaginary world for the past year, in which she plays sitcoms about her life over and over again, and we are the audience in the world of her mind. And the cause of all this was the absence of her twin sister. On her birthday a year ago, her sister fell into a coma, not knowing if she would ever wake up again.

The set is simple. Two chairs covered in blankets and coats, a microphone stand, an unplugged microphone, and a small table make up the little world inside her head. On the table is not only the phone, which is always ringing but also a bowl of M&M’s and a fortune cookie.

Before entering this small world, the audience is invited to do a multiple-choice question, which is about their way of facing problems. If it’s confronting the problem, then put a red M&M’s into the box, and if it’s avoiding the problem, then take a blue one. Similar interactions also occur frequently in the show. There are times when Eve asks the audience if they’ve seen a coat she hasn’t been able to find for a long time, and other times when the audience is asked to make multiple-choice decisions for her. However, these interactions just make people feel more involved and do not serve to move the story forward.

While one can feel John’s energy and the humour she possesses, the likability of the characters doesn’t come through this production very well, and a lot of that has to do with the way this story is told. The plot of the story is pretty predictable, but that’s not its biggest issue. The pacing is a bit confusing because the different scenarios don’t connect neatly enough with each other, and the focus gets drowned out, making all the emotional ups and downs of the characters seem sudden.

Even though there are many moments where you can notice with hindsight that many details are relatable, they don’t have the impact they should have. While there are multiple characters mentioned, none of them are clearly defined, and even the main character, Eve, is somewhat vague. As a result, the audience rarely really follows Eve into her world, instead always realising that it’s John acting, leaving the piece only stuck on its original concept. And when the story has the potential to touch people’s hearts, it’s even more of a pity that the piece is presented as it is at the moment.

★★★☆☆ (3*)

Gifted tickets in return for an honest review