Real Babies Don’t Cry
Sally is a widow. Her only son lives in New Zealand and
Sally has never even met her daughter-in-law. To counteract her loneliness and
to replace the daughter she never had, our protagonist buys a lifelike baby
doll from ‘reborn artist’, Jeanette, and is thrilled with her purchase. The
only problem is Miles, Sally’s much younger lodger/’friend’, who is rightfully
creeped out by the horrendous object and Sally’s devotion to it.
The surreal scenario yields plenty of laughs, as Jeanette
unironically explains the various eccentricities of the ‘reborn community’ and
tries to get her paws on much more than just Sally’s money. All three members
of this experienced cast are a pleasure to watch.
While the introduction of the thorny issue of mental illness
is not as successfully handled as one might hope, it’s not hard to see why
Stewart Permutt won a Fringe First last week for this witty, well-observed play.
