Review: The Revlon Girl (Park Theatre)

Review by Sam Waite

Note: This show, and this review as a result, contains overt mentions of the Aberfan Disaster, including the deaths of children and grief of parents.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Sixty years ago, the Welsh village of Aberfan fell victim to an infamous disaster, where the collapse of a spoil tip caused the death of, among others, more than one-hundred primary school students. In the months that followed, a group of grieving mothers would begin to meet weekly at the local hotel to share their pain, their stories, and their sympathies. It is these women who Neil Anthony Docking’s The Revlon Girl examines, as it returns to the London stage for a run at the Park Theatre a decade after its premiere.

At the Aberfan Hotel, a representative of cosmetics company Revlon has arrived to prepare for a demonstration later that evening. Welcomed by Sian, a bundle of helpful energy, she begins to set up her products and learns that the group size is unpredictable from week to week. As more ladies appear, it becomes clear that these meetings are primarily for the sharing and healing of communal grief, and that this newcomer’s presence has been requested largely to make them feel that bit more put together, maybe even a bit more human.

To get what little complaint there is out of the way and allow for the many compliments to come, Docking’s dialogue can become expository when the mothers tell their stories. This is not to say that there is too much exposition, because certain stories do demand to be told, but that the language used becomes less natural the deeper into these feelings they delve. Elsewhere, his dialogue feels so authentic, off-the-cuff in many places, that it becomes difficult not to notice a rehearsed, slightly stilted quality creeping in during these moments. With such richly drawn characters and important topics to discuss, of course, it’s hard to hold it against Docking that, in adding the requisite weight, he detaches just that bit from the characters’ authenticity.

Beyond this one critique, Docking’s script is roundly strong. Alongside the remainder of the dialogue, which feels rooted fully in both the time and place of the story, his sense of pace is assured, and he allows us to understand these women bit by bit without resorting to lengthy introductions. Relationships and long-established dynamics come easily to life before our eyes, and simply through his writing the characters are easy to understand, and even easier to connect with. He also balances the inherent sorrow in the play’s background with lovely touches of humour, doing a wonderful job of remaining sensitive without becoming overly maudlin.

Credited for both direction and design, Maxine Evans shows a clear understanding of the work’s intentions. The Revlon Girl takes place in real time over an hour and a half of these women’s lives, and Evans’ control over its control and pacing ensure that it neither feels like a slog or as if it has flitted away too quickly. The intimate space of the theatre’s Park 90 space is used well, a simple industrial archway informing where the entrance to this upstairs room is, and our imaginations left to fill out how much standing room latecomers may have to observe the demonstration from. Under Evans’ direction, it’s clear that the group members are intimately familiar with this space, and that our unnamed Revlon Girl is totally unfamiliar and struggling to find her footing.

A true ensemble piece, The Revlon Girl has a titular role but no real star. All five of these women are of equal importance and both Docking’s script and Evans’ direction allow them equal opportunity to shine. Antonia Kinlay plays the Revlon representative, bringing a fish-out-of-water desperation to the part while letting the character’s passion for her work bubble progressively to the surface. Sian, meanwhile, is given a great deal of warmth and a stirring near-finale moment of emotional heft courtesy of a winning Charlotte Gray, contrasting beautifully with the hard-headed, emotionally open qualities Mirain Haf Roberts instills in outlandish Rona. Frazzled and reclusive Maralyn is brought to tender, moving life by Hedydd Dylan, while the ensemble is completed by the ever-diplomatic Jean, played with a quiet grace and fiery passion by Llinos Daniel.

All five of these actors do a remarkable job of throwing themselves back and forth between sitcom shenanigans and dramatic tensions, never missing a bit and each managing to push themselves to the emotional forefront without minimising anyone else’s work. When a cast works this beautifully together, it feels almost as if it may be a disservice to review them individually – they are at their best when seen as a collective, and while the parts are strong, their work as a whole is the greatest strength of this production.

A stirring play and a necessary ode to not only those who were lost, but also those who came together to share their hurt and find community in their healing, The Revlon Girl’s acclaimed reputation precedes it, and with good reason. These are the kind of stories that will always be important and, tragically, will always be seen as timely for one reason or another. A decade on from its premiere, and six from its real-life basis, this show proves the importance of never forgetting hardships, and of never forgetting what people can do to help one another keep going.

The Revlon Girl plays at the Park Theatre until November 14th

For tickets and information visit https://parktheatre.co.uk/events/the-revlon-girl/