After last year’s wonderfully chaotic Getting Over Hugh, I made a point of catching Acting Out’s return to the Prague Fringe with Stealing Stories. I’m glad I did. While this new show hasn’t quite shaken the company’s love of a jumbled plot or sudden tonal swerves, it’s undeniably entertaining – and oddly compelling, in spite (or perhaps because) of its flaws.
Chaotic, compelling, and packed with great lines
Billed as a sharp comedy about creative ownership and queer identity, Stealing Stories asks some big questions: who gets to tell which stories? Who owns a lived experience? And can straight, cis writers credibly portray queer lives without tipping into appropriation? These are fertile topics – though here, they’re explored in a script that veers wildly from pointed satire to melodrama to sincere debate, often within the same scene.
Once again, writer/director Sean Denyer proves he’s brimming with ideas. Possibly too many. Just as the audience settles into a funny exchange – like a book launch Q&A where a character reminds us, “This is not a pantomime” – we’re suddenly plunged into an earnest subplot involving an Afghan refugee. There are also lesbian romantic triangle plays, a friendship breakdown, and more than one impassioned monologue about who can write what. If Getting Over Hugh was a “fabulous hot mess”, Stealing Stories is its slightly more mature sibling: still messy, but starting to make sense of the chaos.
Some improvements are evident. Lighting transitions – a major issue in last year’s production – have been refined, though the end of each scene would still benefit from a snap fade rather than a slow drift into confusion. The acting across the board is strong and helps keep us grounded, even when the script goes off-piste.
Despite its inconsistencies, Stealing Stories is a show I’d recommend. It’s fun, fast-moving and performed with infectious energy. There are great lines (“We’re all in drag, but some of us are just boring”) and more than a few laugh-out-loud moments. It also raises worthwhile questions – even if it doesn’t always answer them.
Ultimately, Denyer doesn’t quite stick the landing when it comes to balancing satire with sincerity. But like last year, the show’s chaotic heart is part of its charm. And once again, I left the theatre amused, bemused, and slightly envious of the fun the cast was clearly having on stage.
