REVIEW: PISS GIRLS at The Hope Theatre 1 – 5 July 2025
“a frank and funny exploration of adolescence, and all the bodily fluids that accompany it.” ★★★ ½
If you recall the most pivotal moments of your life, it’s likely you remember exactly where you were when they happened. For best friends Faye and Gemma, there’s one uniting factor; they all take place in the toilets. Piss Girls documents the journey of the two confidantes as they navigate relationships, sexuality and growing up from the confines of the bathroom walls. On two seemingly diverging paths into adult life, can they keep a lid on the issues that threaten their friendship? Or will external pressures cause it to unravel like loo roll?
Such is the commitment to the toilet theme that two porcelain thrones are mainstays of the set, and are manoeuvred around the otherwise minimal surroundings as we transition from scene to scene. Along with toilet paper and various sanitary products, they are amusingly used as stand-ins for a number of different props throughout the play. It’s impressive just how many uses can be found from these items, and is a credit to the innovation and creativity of this production.
Often when actors portray the same characters at different ages throughout their lives, it can feel clunky and awkward, especially if they’re playing versions of their characters that are significantly younger. However, Samantha Dilena (Faye) and Brooke McCloy (Gemma) transition smoothly from schoolgirls to undergraduate students with ease, showcasing their versatility as actors. The two share an easy comfortability with each other that illustrates their close friendship, and the connection between them feels completely authentic.
Particularly impressive is Dilena, whose physical characterisation of Faye early in the play skilfully plants the seeds of a storyline that will later come to fruition. Her reserved, tense physicality contrasts with the carefree buoyancy of Gemma, setting the two characters on separate pathways that will later cause tensions to arise and put their friendship in jeopardy.
The themes Piss Girls addresses are fairly well-trodden ground for coming-of-age media, and as a play it doesn’t say anything truly groundbreaking or revolutionary. However, they’re handled with a delicate mix of sensitivity and humour, giving the play emotional weight without feeling saccharine or sentimental. At times, it feels as if these weighty topics are glossed over slightly, and exploring these issues in more depth would have allowed for a more comprehensive dive into the girls’ dynamic, as well as their individual psychologies. With a run time of 45 minutes, Piss Girls is just a snapshot of a complex relationship spanning almost a decade, traversing multiple states in Australia and involving various degrees of intoxication.
Soundtracking this journey are various pop tunes of the 2000s, often accompanied by the two characters dancing with the unselfconscious energy of youth, making for a fast-paced performance that doesn’t dip in energy at any point. Despite the differences that arise between Faye and Gemma, it’s hard not to root for their friendship and enjoy Piss Girls for what it is: a frank and funny exploration of adolescence, and all the bodily fluids that accompany it.
Piss Girls, The Hope Theatre 1st-5th July
Cast
Samantha Dilena and Brooke McCloy
producers
MOLLY HANDS & CALLUM FLINT
lighting designer
MAE ELLIOT
Reviewer Rebecca Bairstow graduated from the University of Manchester with a degree in Drama and English Literature in 2017. She has since continued to write plays, including Warped in 2024, and Don't Ask for the Earth in 2025.
○
