Jessie Cave is a genius. This is true whether we’re talking about her infuriating social recluse of an alter ego or if we’re talking about the actress behind the creation of the exasperatingly geeky Bookworm. The former too clever for her own good, the latter just clever for our own enjoyment. With adorable excitement Cave welcomes us to Bookworms United. During the next fifty minutes we are let in on the reasons behind her obsession with books, the fictional characters she most cherishes and the rules she wishes to impose upon our new club. Not only does the audience expand their vocabulary, but they gain invaluable insight into some of her favourite literature, such as the Barbar series, Narnia and Andre Agassi’s autobiography.
Cave adopts character in such an utterly convincing way and delivers remarkably well-devised monologues, ensuring smiles on faces throughout and some moments of laugh out loud comedy. Her alter ego in fact shares the same life experiences as actress Cave, but when the bookworm takes us through her story it automatically becomes mirthsome. It’s never tedious and the inclusion of a couple of extra characters adds wonderful comedic depth. Her relationship with her younger sister is wickedly portrayed and the pair play out their dominator- dominated relationship with fantastic panache. The extent of Cave’s kooky sense of humour is revealed to us through special gems, notably, her song about The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and a beautifully odd play about unrequited love and her subsequent despondency.
