Review: Water Party, The Union Theatre

One of the many pleasures of reviewing fringe theatre is seeing shows in their infancy. Sometimes you may even play the smallest part in their development, with a random comment made in a review taken onboard by the creatives, leaving you feeling like a proud Uncle as you watch it growing up. 

I’d say Mimi Collins’ Water Party is very much one of those shows. What began as a lockdown project and script reading over Zoom, as part of Bespoke Plays’ efforts to give artists an outlet when theatres were closed, became their very first London project at the start of 2024. It was already a great play, taking us into a very believable dystopian world where the birth rate is strictly controlled through the water supply, with the lucky few provided pure water for one year to try to conceive. The ongoing fallout of the Roe v Wade Supreme Court ruling, and the issue of a woman’s control over her own body loomed large as we watched three couples discuss their desire to be parents, and their shock at the thought that in the past women may have deliberately ended a pregnancy. And of course, there was intrigue about just who was in control, with talk of ‘The Bureau’ and its hold over every aspect of people’s lives. 

This rewritten version retains all those central themes along with the same characters, but everything now feels more defined. Each character has an obvious purpose, their place in this strange society much clearer; some are blindly obedient, trusting without question the faceless leaders and believing that everything is for the greater good, others wonder quite who the rules benefit and for what purpose. Then there are the rest, sitting in between these two, maybe quietly wondering but still going through life without wanting to upset the status quo they have achieved. This is an America that voted Trump in for a second term, a place of polar extremes where each side blindly believes the narrative that fits their prejudices and needs. 

Retaining some of the cast from the 2024 version, whilst bringing in others who have worked elsewhere with Bespoke has clearly helped in creating stronger bonds between couples, especially with Caroline Ford and Jay Faisca as proud new recipients of pure water, Celeste and Daniel. Their opening scene contains very few words, but their chemistry helps express their delight. Madeleine Herd’s distraught Mara delivers an edge to her performance that draws the attention, whilst Tiffany Smith gives off an aloof smugness at being the only mother present, as if she is somehow much more worthy. Completing the cast are Jack Whittle and Will Cox, who more than justify their places at the dinner table. 

The extra time afforded to this second production has also allowed for less use of the script in hand, as well as a set that is beginning to look much more like that of a full production. Even the simple addition of a door frame helps set us firmly in a normal household. All of this means that Water Party feels much more polished than the 2024 show. But it’s the reworked ending that gives me personally the greatest pleasure. Of its original, I said “less successful and should undergo a rethink”, a comment that Collins clearly took on board. The ending now is as sweet as can be, taking us by surprise with one last twist that feels natural and worthy of all that has gone before in bringing us to this moment. It certainly leaves me feeling proud that I may have had a hand in this.

Written and directed by Mimi Collins
Produced by Bespoke Plays
Sound and lighting by Gabriel Burns
Associate Producer: Analiese Emerson

Water Party has completed its run.