Millennial or non-millennial, any woman will be able to relate to Cat Hepburn's spoken word hour. The Scottish poet has adapted her debut poetry pamphlet, Girlhood, into a stage play for Fringe, weaving together the poems to create a coming of age story.
A letter to the Spice Girls reads like a love note to her nine-year-old inner child
It is scarily relatable, sharply accurate, and a skilled use of poetic techniques from this young wordsmith. Full of nostalgic references from the Spice Girls to Smash Hits magazine, the first poem - a letter to the Spice Girls reads like a love note to her nine-year-old inner child.
Hepburn has thought of everything from the multiple uses for her pink, waterproof jacket to interplaying voiceovers, lighting sequences and music. Cleverly choreographed pieces show her expressing age through the method of tying the coat around her waist, over her shoulders, or zipped up to the top.
As she moves from childhood to her teenage years, late adolescence and the days just before we accept our ascent into adulthood, she leaves nothing off the table.
Some of her poems, particularly those which speak about puberty, clubbing, the sisterhood and even domestic abuse make a definitive impact; there is no doubt this Glaswegian girl can write - and is worth the price of the ticket alone.
While the words were present in abundance it was the performance that lacked a certain vigour. Dance moves were performed but weren't finished with polish and precision, notes were sung but not allowed to hang in the air - she cut them short. The material, slowly weaving together like cloth, fell short right before forming the final piece of clothing.
Cat Hepburn has what it takes to dominate the spoken word realm. All she has to do is perform like no one's watching - much like her nine-year-old self.
