BritishTheatre

Published on

August 12, 2022

REVIEW: Soho Boy, Space at Symposium Hall, Edinburgh Fringe ✭✭

By

pauldavies

Paul T Davies reviews Soho Boy at Symposium Hall at the Edinburgh Fringe.

Soho Boy

Soho Boy

Space at Symposium Hall

2 Stars

Book Tickets


This new musical by Paul Emellon Daly follows the story of Spencer, a young gay man in London who has hopes and dreams of finding success and, more importantly, a boyfriend. So far, so familiar. He gains a boyfriend, Johnny, who is into chemsex and the show then follows another familiar route. Whilst the dangers of chemsex are important to be told, London has had many a gay chemsex play over the years, and it now follows far too familiar tropes to be dramatically interesting.
I found the show to be all surface and no depth, perhaps because the hour long restriction means we don't have time to get to know the characters. Recent Italia Conti graduate Owen Dennis started off a little nervously, and perhaps he needs more experience to really inhabit the character. In fairness, Spencer's refusal to take part in chemsex is then reversed too easily, and his contraction of HIV is a serious message, but here feels cynical dramatically, our emotions attempting to be manipulated I don't feel the emotional content is earned.
The music, apart from a drag Torch Song, which Dennis performs well, and the title song, is forgettable. The show runs smoothly technically and is very slick. A disappointment for me, as I could see there was much potential yet to be tapped.

August 7-13 and 15-27

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The British Theatre website has been established to celebrate the rich and diverse theatrical culture of the United Kingdom.  Our ethos revolves around encouraging and nurturing the performing arts in all its forms. The spirit of theatre is very much alive and the British Theatre website is at the forefront of delivering news and information to audiences and enthusiasts everywhere. Our team of theatre journalists and reviewers are working hard to cover productions and news.


We are constantly developing the site and are always open to receiving feedback from our readers. Join our mailing list to be kept informed of all the latest news that is of interest to you..

ABOUT BRITISHTHEATRE

BritishTheatre.com
Opening Night Media Ltd
3rd Floor, 80 St. Martin’s Lane
Covent Garden
London WC2N 4AA

The British Theatre website has been established to celebrate the rich and diverse theatrical culture of the United Kingdom.  Our ethos revolves around encouraging and nurturing the performing arts in all its forms. The spirit of theatre is very much alive and the British Theatre website is at the forefront of delivering news and information to audiences and enthusiasts everywhere. Our team of theatre journalists and reviewers are working hard to cover productions and news.


We are constantly developing the site and are always open to receiving feedback from our readers. Join our mailing list to be kept informed of all the latest news that is of interest to you..