Blood Bath – Lion & Unicorn Theatre, Kentish Town (Camden Fringe)

Writers: Frances Eva, Molly Goetzee and Emily Walling

Reviewer: Christine Stanton

“Metaphorical & Mythical“

3 / 5

The bathroom of a busy house party is an unexpected place for a siren, a selkie and a rusalka to bump into each other, but they’ve each got their own reason as to why they’ve been drawn out of the water, thankful that they’ve got a common connection between the three of them.  

Written by Frances Eva, Molly Goetzee and Emily Walling, this is an inspired modern day mythical tale, shrouded in metaphors and mystery. The audience are first introduced to the siren (Molly Goetzee) lying in the bathtub singing hypnotic notes, using a loop pedal, that adds a beautifully magical atmosphere to the otherwise sparse setting. Faced with a big decision, she finds solitude alone in the bathtub, until the rusalka (Maire McGovern) bursts in filled with anxiety and panic. The pair bond quickly finding a connection with each other even before acknowledging their mythical seascape connection. Completing the trio is the selkie (Frances Eva), who has had her skin stolen from her on the beach and is desperate to find it before it’s too late.  

Other than the obvious link of being mythological creatures, they are also united by their female sisterhood – hurt in some way by men that have crossed their paths, and each using their own method of healing the trauma that they’ve endured. For those less aware of sirens, selkies and rusalka’s, there is a helpful moment in the show where they give a brief description of the folklore that surrounds them. The storyline is easy to follow, and the added fairytale-esque element helps to give a bit more bite to the narrative, though some of the conversations could be expanded a little further to add some more mystery and magic, as there are points that the structure feels a bit too formulaic for a folk story. None of the characters overshadow each other, as they are each given their own small storyline that helps to explain their reason for being at the party, while still neatly fitting together as a whole.  

This is an enjoyable show that creatively adds the supernatural twist into the female focused storyline, helping to set it apart and remain unique, making a splash on day one of Camden Fringe 2024.  

Runs Until 31^st July 2024