STUFF is the story of Toby and Jess, a couple unable to have children, and their old friend Xav who turns up one evening with a slightly unusual gift – a sperm donation. It delves deep into the complex issues of life and death but doesn’t ever become too heavy going, allowing light relief in the form of Mick Cooper’s witty and intelligent script. Playing as part of Camden’s annual fringe festival, the play has won a number of awards and has proved a hit with audiences and critics alike with its heartfelt story, engaging script and excellent cast.

The set design is simple – a modestly sized sofa is placed centre stage along with a coffee table. This is not only practical for the show to tour around the fringe circuit, but also helps to give the play an inclusive, close feel and places the audience directly into the drama unfolding before them. Despite the lack of set, the cast still manages to create a lot of mess as all manor of dips and sauces find themselves flung across the room, onto the table and onto the cast!

Performing excellently are the strong cast of three, all of whom are natural performers who clearly understand their characters very deeply. Karl Greenwood is the clear standout as Xav, balancing perfectly his hilarious antics with the complex issues he is dealing with. Greenwood demonstrates his comedic skill in particular when he becomes teenage superhero ‘Xav-Man’, perfectly fulfilling the stereotypical idiotic best friend role. None of this however detracts from the more sincere moments when Xav is dealing with his imminent death – if anything the juxtaposition of the two makes it all the more profound.

Eve Burley is a natural as Jess Matthews, making the character believable, likeable and excellently demonstrating her inner struggle surrounding the fact her husband is unable to have children. Peter Ash similarly demonstrates the inner struggle of ex-serviceman Toby Matthews as he struggles to live up to the expectations set out for him to be able to start a family. His portrayal risked being slightly melodramatic at times, but with the intense drama in this piece it would have been a challenge not to seem over-aggressive in places.

Mick Cooper has created a script that is well crafted and thought-provoking, but that still allows the audience to enjoy themselves without feeling too glum – it does, after all, deal with a lot of challenging issues. The humour in the play doesn’t detract from its emotional core; it only enhances the complexity of the story. A likeable piece of theatre that really makes you think, Stuff is certainly one to check out on the Camden Fringe this summer.

Stuff is playing the Etcetera Theatre until 23 August. For more information and tickets, see the Camden Fringe website.  Photo by Nick Edwards.