Sugar Mummies

What a cultural week; 2 plays in one week. Last weekend I went to see Tanika Gupta's brilliant 'Sugar Mummies, but forgot to post the post. It's about sex tourism in Jamaica & very funny but not light. Young jamaican men attempt to seduce women of a certain age with the line; 'We are real men. In Jamaica, real men like the cat, not the kitten. And real men like real women. Mature and intelligent and beautiful women like you.'.

The Royal Court is a hub of great new writing, I will never forget seeing the amazing Miranda Richardson in Etta Jenks for only £5 on a Monday night. Such events are such a treat and a reminder that big cities don't always have to be expensive if you're alert! This drama not only looks at the older women who are sleeping with young black men, it also focuses on the realities of the island. It is very clever for such a funny production to also show us some biting realities of the islanders' lives & a myriad of relationships which are far from simplistic. We explore a life touched by HIV, the relationships between tourists and the islanders, & the economic relationships between 1st & 3rd world.

Linda Bellingham was fabulous, as expected, and brave for showing for spending her time on stage in a swimsuit exhibiting a body I couldn't imagine it playing on Broadway somehow... Marcel McCalla was more surprisingly good, perhaps because his role in Footballers' Wives was so 2D despite its complexities.

Birmingham Rep is a great theatre, I just would have liked it to be easier to order a snack than it was, but the late night curry after the show was my pleasure!