Let’s talk about sex. Tricycle Young Company has come together with a group of teenagers from local schools and colleges, as part of the Takeover at the Tricycle Theatre. Their mission? To get young people discussing and debating sexual exploration in a safe and creative environment. The finished article: a devised production called Bred which is one of the most honest and warming performances you could see all year.

Bred begins, not on the stage, but in a backroom at the Tricycle, where we witness the young cast of characters preparing for Hastan’s (Joe Collier) party at Bred’s church hall (Bred being the fictional city setting). By way of mp3 players and headphones, we get to listen to their upmost thoughts and concerns on sexual intercourse, before we are directed into the main space. It’s a nice opening, and allows us to connect to at least one teenager in our own unique way. Whilst we wait for the audience to settle down in the theatre, Hastan takes us through ‘sex bingo,’ which is essentially ‘Never Have I Ever’ for grown-ups. The dirtiest minded of us stand to win a bottle of champagne, but they’re pretty awkward questions (“Who has flirted with an animal?”) and the show gets off to a slightly bumpy start.

The party forms the crux of the action, and here we are invited to peek upon the various teenage scenarios presented, as part of Hastan’s ‘hive-mind.’ Some we’ve seen before – Ahmed (Ellen Kul) teaching Adam (Mustapha Elwadi) how to talk to girls is amusing, and the bromance between Tom (Jamie Ankarah) and Casey (Daniel Calfe) is sweet, as the latter struggles to go through a painful breakup. What is remarkable is that the script has been completely devised by these young performers, and some of the reactions and remarks really take you by surprise. My favourite of these moments is Kitty’s (Lilly Reeves) realisation that she’s gay; joyous, excited and so refreshing it makes you want to stand and cheer. I also loved Joan (Mischa Alexander) who is transgender, but the script doesn’t draw attention to it. Seeing teenagers present work of this sensitivity is as a rewarding experience as you can imagine, and every performance is completely believable.

Bred never preaches to you, but it does throw in a few social issues that don’t get enough development to matter. There’s a class system that doesn’t really factor into the proceedings, and quips about the Tories feel out of place. Technically it’s also not the most polished performance. Sound cues are a bit lazy, there are projection issues (both audibly and visually) and for some reason the set is pushed right towards the back of the stage, leaving the front a little bit like no-mans-land.

The show culminates in homeless Michael (Joseph Cannon) losing his virginity to Wolf (Riyanna Mistry), in not the most consenting circumstances. As the ‘hive-mind,’ we have to vote on whether Michael reports the incident or not. I applaud the tackling of such a subject matter today, and though we’re presented with a somewhat grey area, the decision is an easy one to make; it leaves the ending without the emotional punch it could have.

In lieu of the recent discussions on sex education in schools, Bred provides an excellent opportunity – this is a production that should be shown to teenagers up and down the country. The inventive dialogue and winning performances are entertaining, but the handling of the material is truly something to shout about. Kudos to all involved, Bred is an absolute triumph.

 

Bred played at the Tricycle Theatre until Saturday 19 March. For more information visit the Tricycle Theatre website.