Liverpool Playhouse Theatre
Directed by Serdar Bilis
Review by Stephanie Rowe
This play set partially in cyberspace and is obviously aimed at the younger generation we often call teenagers, and it is with Frank Cottrell-Boyce’s humour and ability at being able to write a script in the language of today’s youth and set it around the my-space users of today that makes this a highly amusing play. 
Cottrell-Boyce is better known for his books and films like Millions and 24 hour party people, so it is with baited breath I found myself strangely looking forward to his first ever theatre script. He manages to make you feel every emotion the teenagers are feeling and even makes cyberspace appear less frightening to the older generation.
Proper Clever tells of a group of teenagers who think they know everything there is to know about everything and it is with the arrival of Becky (later called Bex) that they discover life is not as simple as they first thought it would be and that you have to work at the many things life throws at you.
Becky is a confused young lady who wants to be one of the in gang, Patrick has had a spiritual experience while in Pwllheli and Matthew is in touch with his feminine side. Riley is the very grown up teenager with an elder boyfriend who treats her like a princess, Claire is the wisest teenager, who tries to make the others see the error of their ways with Rachel being the typical fish out of water.
The setting was a simple but effective affair with two walls that were used to occasionally offer props from hidden drawers within the set, and a clever use of projection on the walls to take us into cyber space, lighting appeared to be basic but this is i guess due to the projections, Costumes were simple school uniforms. The rest of the clothing was done cleverly with coats and basic clothing items.
The use of the screens when they were chatting to each other on my-space was rather annoying as you had to strain your neck to see if you were in the stalls and I certainly came out holding mine.
This is definatly a play for the younger patrons of the theatre going generation and although enjoyable isn't a play that I would want another download of.
Photo - Robert Daysmall
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