• Review For Us
    • In London or across the UK
    • at Edinburgh Fringe
  • List Your Show
  • Advertising
  • Musicals
  • Plays
  • Ballet & Dance
  • Previews
  • First Look
Theatre Weekly
  • Home
  • News
    • West End
    • Off-West End
    • Regional & Tours
  • Reviews
  • Interviews
  • Digital Theatre
  • Tickets
    • Discounts
    • Musicals
    • Plays
    • Opera
    • Dance
    • Concerts
  • Edinburgh Fringe 2025
    • Edinburgh Fringe News
    • Edinburgh Fringe Previews
  • Contact Us
    • Join us as a Reviewer
No Result
View All Result
Theatre Weekly
  • Home
  • News
    • West End
    • Off-West End
    • Regional & Tours
  • Reviews
  • Interviews
  • Digital Theatre
  • Tickets
    • Discounts
    • Musicals
    • Plays
    • Opera
    • Dance
    • Concerts
  • Edinburgh Fringe 2025
    • Edinburgh Fringe News
    • Edinburgh Fringe Previews
  • Contact Us
    • Join us as a Reviewer
No Result
View All Result
Theatre Weekly
No Result
View All Result
Home Edinburgh Fringe 2019

Edinburgh Review: Beach Body Ready at Pleasance Courtyard

by Owain Rose
August 8, 2019
Reading Time: 3 mins read
Beach Body Ready The Roaring Girls photo Alex Brook

Beach Body Ready The Roaring Girls photo Alex Brook

Are you ready for the beach? The Roaring Girls haven’t been for a long time but they really are getting there. Beach Body Ready is playing at the Pleasance Courtyard’s Above venue at this year’s Edinburgh Fringe.

We saw it, we mocked it, we loved the social media obliteration of the deeply patronising ‘Are you beach body ready?’ advert of 2015. In a world of expanding waistlines, body image is going to continue to be a hot topic and this production joyously gives us an insight into the mind of a fat person. Yes, I said fat. I said it because much of this show is about breaking down the stigmas and language associated with those who have body issues. The Roaring Girls want us to normalise and reclaim the insulting language.

It isn’t all about tipping the scales though. Only two of these three women has struggled being overweight; we are also given the story of a woman who is perceived as ‘normal’ but has carried a plethora of emotional baggage about her body image around for as long as she can remember. It makes for strong and contrasting content when the focus could have just been on obesity.

       

Beach Body Ready is a deeply candid production, feeling much more like a highly entertaining and extremely funny conversation rather than a traditional theatre piece. It tells the auto-biographical stories, the struggles and triumphs of three women, each with their own perception of their bodily battles over the years. That is not to say there is no drama – there is much angst and heart strings tugged at their treatment at the hands of family, friends and often most shockingly, strangers who felt the need to comment on them.

So what do we take away from this performance? A fist pumping desire to champion all bodies – tick. A healthy reminder to be kind, as you never know what someone has been through – tick. Perhaps the simplest of all – that a body (and mind) is a work in progress, and though it is frustrating that it never just stays still and does as it’s told or is willed to do, it is what you have right now. So make the most of it.

You mightalso like

Laura Elsworthy

Laura Elsworthy on “Mary and the Hyenas” at Hull Truck Theatre

Little Shop of Horrors Cast

Cast Announced for Little Shop of Horrors in new Co-Production

Beach Body Ready is empowering, honest and a breath of fresh air.

Owain Rose

Owain Rose

Owain is a lecturer in Acting and Drama at the University of Northampton. Side careers in performing, writing and directing theatre when the opportunities arise. He has an MA in Actor Training and Coaching from the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama.

Related Articles

Laura Elsworthy
Interviews

Laura Elsworthy on “Mary and the Hyenas” at Hull Truck Theatre

Little Shop of Horrors Cast
News

Cast Announced for Little Shop of Horrors in new Co-Production

Modest
News

Starry drag king cast announced for Middle Child’s Modest

Hull Truck Theatre th Anniversary
News

Hull Truck Theatre Celebrates Its Incredible History And Looks To The Future For 50th Anniversary Season

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

I agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Twitter Facebook Youtube Instagram

At Theatre Weekly we give theatre a new audience. You'll find our theatre news, theatre reviews and theatre interviews are written from an audience point of view. Our great value London theatre tickets will get you the best deal for your theatre tickets.
Theatre Weekly, 124 City Road, London EC1V 2NX
  • Join Our Community
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Contact Us
  • Advertising

Recent News

Mark Sands and Andrew Muir Photo by Michael David McKernan

Ardent Theatre Company Launches Bold 10-Year Manifesto to End Class Inequality in Theatre

Imago 6 Corporeal Imago Photo Chris Randle Artists Eowynn Enquist Isak Enquist Image supplied by publicist

Edinburgh Fringe Preview: Imago at Assembly Roxy (Central)

© 2022 Theatre Weekly

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Tickets
  • Digital Theatre
  • News
    • News
    • West End
    • Off West End
    • Regional & Tours
    • Digital
  • Interviews
  • Reviews
  • Edinburgh Fringe 2025
    • Edinburgh Fringe News
    • Edinburgh Fringe Previews
  • Contact Us
    • Join us as a Reviewer

© 2022 Theatre Weekly