In this wacky space production, you meet Astronaut Susan Albright, accused of a space crime against her scorned ex-wife. The show explores a new era where a lesbian could be the first in LGBTQ history to do the space walk. In a brave act of defiance, Albright refuses to be a cog in the company representation game and becomes a villain to NASA – losing out on her opportunity, but in the process, becoming a hero.
Rosanna Suppa, who plays Susan Albright, is joined by her two gay crew, Eleanor Colville and Robbie Taylor-Hunt. The cast takes on different characters throughout the show. This includes Brett, the straight alpha male astronaut, Gaia Saffron, the evil ex-wife, and Twink (yes, that is his name), the unsurprisingly gay AI NASA interface aboard the space station.
The cast is remarkable at juggling the different characters running back and forth between the stage and costumes to keep the continuity of the plot.
Lesbian Space Crime’s humour reminds me of those spoof comedies from the 80s like ‘Airplane!’ and ‘The Naked Gun’, this kind of slapstick comedy always makes me laugh, I don’t know whether it’s the self-awareness, absurdity or over-the -topness or in this case settling a child custody battle with light sabres but Lesbian Space Crimes has this spoofy charm to it.
The plot obviously focuses on queer culture, poking fun at it in some respects but also pointing out genuine challenges that the LGBTQ community have previously faced. Don’t get me wrong, this show is not an insightful art piece for the queer community, the fringe already has plenty of that, but if you want to sit down, turn off your brain and enjoy some inclusive comedy, Lesbian Space Crime is the perfect show for you.
Lesbian Space Crime 14.50, Pleasance Dome, until August 25
https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/lesbian-space-crime
