Scenes With Girls

At Pip Theatre, Salad Days Collective’s production of Miriam Battye’s Scenes With Girls bursts onto the stage with a raw, unfiltered energy that captures the essence of modern female friendship with startling clarity. Directed by Ava Rusch and brought to life by a dedicated cast and crew, the Australian premiere of this contemporary play offers a compelling exploration of love, identity, and the often-overlooked intensity of female bonds.

The production kicks off with Jasmine Prasser and Hannah Ward competing in a delightfully amusing dance party to Charli XCX’s “Guess.” Styled like a Just Dance game on the Wii, complete with fun disco lights, the dance sequence choreographed by Hannah Ward sets a high-energy tone that was playful, vibrant, and very relatable. Despite their breathlessness from the energetic number, the pair didn’t miss a beat and immediately began delivering their lines with impressive gusto.

Jasmine Prasser shines as Tosh, bringing a deep emotional complexity to a character whose struggles with unspoken trauma and anxiety become painfully evident. From the beginning, Prasser's Tosh is a character marked by a raw, palpable sense of disillusionment and hurt. Her portrayal of Tosh’s struggle with feeling unheard and uncared for is and her spiral into emotional chaos is both heartbreaking and compelling. Prasser’s ability to convey the contrast between Tosh’s public façade and her private suffering was characterized by a remarkable blend of chaotic emotional outbursts and quiet intensity. Prasser skilfully balanced this extreme range of emotion with an authenticity that left goosebumps running up my arms.

Opposite to Tosh, Hannah Ward was stunning as Lou, performing with a vibrant and infectious energy throughout. Vivacious and often humorous, Lou’s seemingly endless stream of messy sex stories and her passionate, often chaotic energy are delivered with a genuine, almost carefree abandon that makes her character immediately engaging. From the outset, Ward infuses Lou with a lively, almost reckless enthusiasm that contrasts sharply with Tosh's more subdued demeanour. This dynamic sets the stage for the intricate interplay between the two housemates. 

One of the most compelling aspects of the production was the palpable sense of intimacy and connection between Prasser’s Tosh and Ward’s Lou. Their chemistry is electric, making their scenes together feel incredibly genuine. This chemistry is crucial in highlighting the complexity of their friendship, particularly as it unravels throughout the play. The scene where Lou and Tosh brush their teeth together, framed in the hanging bathroom mirror, captures the comfort and closeness of their relationship. This moment, though simple, becomes a poignant illustration of their bond.

The third wheel throughout the play, Georgina Sawyer’s Fran adds a touch of prudish politeness and sensibility. Her character, initially seen as a mundane presence, becomes a welcome comedic relief. I never imagined a mundane moment like taking the contraceptive pill could be so funny.  Fran’s awkwardness and continuous sidelining provides a bittersweet commentary on the shaky grounds of modern-day sisterhood, reflecting both her own sense of loss and her struggle to fit back into a space that has changed in her absence. Sawyer’s performance in these moments is heart-wrenching, illustrating the sadness and vulnerability that comes with exclusion.

The lone male in the mix, Neily McNaughton performed the male prop. With only a single line, his brief appearance as Joseph, serves as a poignant symbol of the broader themes of exploitation and objectification. McNaughton’s entry from the audience is a fascinating choice as the audience has seen just how fragile Tosh is, and therefore, so can he. This clever choice in direction serves to create an air of unease, alluding to the common story of men taking advantage of vulnerable women. The cherry on top of this symbolism comes at the end of the play, with the three women taking their bows while McNaughton remains standing below them, beautifully highlighting the play’s commentary on female empowerment.

Directed by Ava Rusch, Scenes With Girls delves into the complexities of female friendship and modern womanhood with a sharp, insightful lens. Miriam Battye's script intricately weaves together the lives of three young women navigating the turbulent waters of intimacy, self-worth, and societal expectations. For a show that dives deep into the messy, beautiful chaos of female friendship and self-discovery, Rusch has done wonders with the play, exploring themes of love, identity, and personal growth with a tender and thoughtful approach.

The set, designed with charming imperfections by Jasmine Prasser, immerses the audience in a lively sharehouse environment. With a velvet couch, a laundry basket casually spilling out clothes, and a mess of throws, pillows, and an assortment of lamps, the set mirrors the chaotic yet intimate world of the characters. The clever use of a white wall framings to represent a bathroom, with a bedazzled boho curtain standing in for a door, perfectly captures the essence of a lived-in, mismatched sharehouse loungeroom.

Sound design by Ziggy Enoch paired with a clever lighting design by Claire Yorston enhance the play’s atmospheric shifts, with lofi beats giving way to gritty electronic music that marks transitions between the vignettes. The portrayal of panic attacks using a almost cosmic fusion of lighting and sound is particularly effective, delivering a powerful representation of internal turmoil. The transitions between scenes, marked by lowered lighting and gritty electronic music, was an effective depiction of the passage of time. However, the transitions between scenes sometimes felt a bit prolonged, as the music interludes occasionally outlasted the actors’ readiness.

Scenes With Girls is a striking exploration of the complexities of female friendship and self-discovery. It offers a bittersweet love letter to the significance of sisterhood and the often-overlooked emotional weight of friendship breakups. With its mix of humour, heartache, and raw honesty this production is a powerful reminder of the profound impact of our closest relationships. The raw honesty and dynamic storytelling of this production by Salad Days Collective provides a profoundly resonant portrayal of modern female bonds. Through a blend of humour, heartache, and raw honesty, this production is a testament to the strength and vulnerability of the female experience.

Don’t miss your chance to witness this dynamic and emotionally resonant performance—grab your tickets now and experience the journey of Tosh, Lou, and Fran firsthand.

Review by Rebecca Lynne

Tickets: https://piptheatre.org/scenes-with-girls/

Photographer: Grace Campbell