Casual Receptionist of the Quarter follows one hard-working gym receptionist as she tries to balance the need to make money with her true passion of music, all while driving home a message about the treatment of service workers.
Nicole Gulasekharam’s receptionist character feels heartwarmingly authentic. We’ve all met an earnest person like her, who seems too sweet for the world, or workplace, they’ve ended up in.
A toothy grin doesn’t hide the nerves underneath, coming together to create a believably troubled lead that you can’t help but root for. The clever narrative, split between one-sided interactions with gym customers and Nicole’s addresses to a producer for the documentary, maps out a surprisingly detailed world in just an hour.
Thanks to Nicole’s performance and the finesse of the writing, there’s plenty of heart in Casual Receptionist of the Quarter. The one-woman show is an earnest defence of service workers at a time when we really need it, and in a place where service workers are run off their feet during Edinburgh’s busy festival season.
The story feels close to home no matter where you sit in society. Everyone in the audience will likely have either been in Nicole’s shoes as a hard-done-by service worker, can relate to the feeling of having a passion for the arts that can’t sustain them, or will be guilty of taking out their frustration on a service worker. Casual Receptionist of the Quarter stands as a welcome reminder of why the latter is unacceptable, yet is so warmly presented that it never comes across as preachy.
In keeping with the theme of the show, the audience feels included but without pressure and is even helped along by the interactions with Nicole. I myself walked away with a plaster, ready to aid me when I inevitably get a Fringe-fuelled blister.
While there’s definitely a powerful message to be found in Casual Receptionist of the Quarter, there’s also plenty of humour throughout, made all the better when the emotional beats bring a tear to your eye.
Casual Receptionist of the Quarter is well worth a watch for anyone who has spent any amount of time in public, so get yourself down to see it before it’s gone.
Listings and ticket information can be found here
