Review: You’re So Special (Soho Theatre)

Review by Sam Woodward

⭐️⭐️

Memories of extracurricular activities from childhood can be both painful and priceless for many. Whether joining a sports team, drama club, art activity or dance class, childhood programmes often provide children with a chance to develop new and exciting skills while giving parents a brief respite from parenthood. Teaching ballet to babies too young to understand what is happening, however, is a rather different challenge. This is the absurd backdrop to Julia Grogan’s newest play, You’re So Special, which follows Miss June as she teaches baby ballet in a crumbling village hall. There was considerable anticipation for Grogan’s latest work, after previous successes including Playfight and Gunter, and the development of this new work at Dublin Fringe Festival Studios.

Grogan’s writing is undoubtedly witty. After Miss June’s final chance of television fame disappears, she clings to her dream of making it big while trying to instill some kind of order and discipline in children too young even to realise what she is doing. Grogan’s impeccable imitation of an overbearing teacher, hiding behind a mask of smiles and exaggerated hand gestures, lands well and brings memories of childhood activities to the forefront. The play also recognises the dangers of social media obsession and the pull of influencers, celebrities and online validation, particularly for a small-town teacher desperate to believe that she is destined for something greater. There is much to connect with here, but these ideas are introduced more convincingly than they are developed. Unfortunately, the muddled structure and disconnected ideas mean that this play does not live up to the promise of Grogan’s previous work.

Miss June’s delusion and ambition are strong throughout the play and drive her into difficult situations. These range from vaping with a member of the addiction-recovery group that meets in the same village hall and directing razor-sharp ridicule towards a healthcare receptionist, to a confusing end-of-term sharing involving a hidden child, a pit of soil and Miss June’s decision to perform a one-woman show rather than showcase the skills of those she was meant to be teaching. Despite their variety, these scenes become monotonous in tone and never build towards a coherent whole. The show ends with little clarity, leaving Grogan’s central message difficult to decipher.

Rachel Lemon, who directs the piece, does little to bring these strands together. Her direction is frequently as confusing as the writing, allowing scenes and voices to run into one another without establishing where Miss June is, who she is addressing or whether events are real, remembered or imagined. Shifts between the baby ballet class, the front of the village hall, Miss Pam’s flat, a pharmacy and Miss June’s private fantasies often land messily. The intention may be to show her grasp of reality slipping, but the effect is more baffling than unsettling. The chaotic end-of-term sharing should be a horrifying culmination of her self-obsession; instead, it leaves both the action and the play’s central argument needlessly obscure.

The minimal design does not help to clarify what is happening, although it creates an effective contrast between nursery sweetness and the darkness beneath it. A simple pink carpet and idyllic cloud curtain form the set, with the colour continuing through the leotard and tracksuit designed by Anisha Fields. Fields’ most successful creation is a clever mirrored box that remains onstage throughout, working as a bathroom cabinet, a mirror and eventually a pit of soil connected to the disappearance of Harvey. Han Sayles’ lighting provides some much-needed definition between scenes, while music, voiceovers and interview material work well in Soho Theatre’s Upstairs venue. George Dennis’ sound design is the evening’s most fully realised element.

Grogan throws everything at her performance, but unfortunately that is part of the problem. Across roughly 65 minutes, she rushes through numerous scenes, locations and conversations without allowing many of them room to develop. Miss June comes across as selfish, desperate and delusional, apparently nearing a breakdown as her dream of stardom refuses to die. Grogan commits fearlessly and whimsically to that desperation, while Aline David’s movement coaching supports her well-timed physical humour and the whimsical way she parades around the stage. Yet the near-constant intensity gives the character nowhere to build. Snippets of song from Les Misérables, dance breaks and the arrival of a helmet, breastplate and sword add still more ideas. The armour may be intended to turn Miss June’s pursuit of fame into a literal battle, but the image is not prepared or integrated well enough to land. The production seems to know what each flourish represents, but rarely allows the audience to feel why it belongs.

A dwindling dream of fame, an obsession with celebrity and a fixation on social media are extremely relevant themes for a new play in 2026. Paired with Grogan’s sharp wit and comic timing, they have the potential to create a hilarious and unsettling look at what happens when the promise of being special collapses. There are flashes of the bold, playful theatre that built Grogan’s reputation, alongside a committed central performance and some accomplished technical work. Yet uneven writing, confusing direction and a collection of theatrical ideas that never form a coherent whole leave the piece frustratingly out of reach. In its current form, Miss June’s battle for fame becomes a battle for the play to make itself understood.

You’re So Special plays at Soho Theatre until 26 September. Tickets from https://sohotheatre.com/events/youre-so-special/#performances