Review: That Song from Rocky Horror (Toucha Toucha Touch Me), Camden People’s Theatre 

In the wake of the 2025 Online Safety Act, discourse around sex work and the destigmatisation of it has skyrocketed (in relation to this point, I recently saw an ad on the tube promoting selling feet pictures online) and unbeknownst to me before seeing this show, it has prompted many sex workers to reevaluate their work and the platforms they operate through. Stoness Verda’s debut play That Song from Rocky Horror (Toucha Toucha Touch Me), part of Camden People Theatre’s SPRINT Festival, tackles this at what feels like a pertinent time, when the future of sex work in the UK is being debated. 

Sauntering into the space in a black latex ensemble to seductive, bassy beats, Stoness wields a chain and collar, before changing into joggers and a vest (a strategic move in order to see her without the bells and whistles, just a person with a job). Simultaneously, audio from two interviews she has conducted plays (with former lovers, presumably), accompanied by projected subtitles. Set is functional, with stage right acting as a dressing room of sorts, whilst the dance pole is at stage left with a microphone stand in front, used for anecdotal and stand up-esque moments. 

Stoness presents her experiences candidly and with pride, approaching many topics throughout the 60 minutes, from her own experiences as a sex worker, the commodification of intimacy (one moving monologue leads to the conclusion that a lack of intimacy can lead to a disconnection from reality) to her involvement with housing action groups. It is quite unconventional from the off, with a loose structure that could do with being channelled more concisely, but the content is there. 

Stories revolving around sex work tend to lean into the darker realities of the profession, often spotlighting the depravity of male clients and their requests, framing sex work as a last resort rather than an informed, chosen career path. Stoness sets out to knock down preconceived ideas about sex work and invite conversation, using audience participation as a device for this – asking direct questions, gathering volunteers to build a dance pole and capture images for a new online profile. Stoness is confident and comfortable with the awkwardness that audience participation brings with it, and ad-libs retorts in response to the occasional lack of response from the audience. She describes her job as a form of acting, which lends itself well here as she has a strong presence that really shines. As she is not a seasoned theatre actor, there were hesitations here and there, plus a few blips, but it felt as though she won the audience over, and the work clearly comes from a place of passion and a drive to do good, which is always commendable. 

Rather than theatre, the show feels more in the realm of performance art, which makes sense given that director Kerenza Diball is a performance artist whose work is politically engaged and focuses heavily on feminism. This format works for the content and is admirably creative but could be refined through cutting down the audience participation elements and focusing on Stoness’ compelling storytelling abilities and calming energy. The recurrent audio interviews are a highlight though, particularly Stoness’ chat with her massage therapist mother. 

This debut is a gathering of Stoness’ passions as well as a call to action, offering thought-provoking points on intimacy in a modern world, and ponders the link between sex work and care work. Whether you are pro sex work or not, this show provides an interesting take on the landscape and if it could be tightened up overall, has great potential.

Produced by Kerensa Diball and Stoness Verda
Written by Stoness Verda
Directed by Kerensa Diball

This was a one-off performance on Friday 20 March as part of Camden People Theatre’s annual SPRINT festival.