Exploring grief and how a young woman muddles through in the days and weeks following her mother's premature death lies at the heart of this raw and honest one-woman play.
(God Save My) Northern Soul is the story of Nicole, a 19-year-old mixed-race girl from Wigan. Like all teenagers, she values friendships, relationships and boozy holidays in Kavos. But the sudden death of her mother, Sandra, forces Nicole to grow up fast.
Natasha Cottriall is the play's writer and single performer. While most of her time on stage is spent giving the audience an insight into how Nicole is feeling, she moves comfortably between playing her grandmother, bolshy best friend Sally, a camp priest and even a mardy checkout girl in Asda.
Cottriall takes her audience on a journey from the jarring moment that Nicole's world changes right through to the day of her mother's funeral, and everything in between. Life is changing fast but the one constant is the rhythmic four-four beat of northern soul.
Set in Wigan, home of the legendary Wigan Casino soul club, Nicole has inherited - literally and spiritually - her mum's love of northern soul music. Cottriall weaves in song choices to match what is happening in Nicole's life at that moment and, in some cases, lets the music tell the story.
There are moments of levity, none more so than when Nicole decides it's time to have sex for the first time (“I lost my mum before I lost my virginity, I'd call that unfair”) but ends up getting off with a lad with a fear of ghosts and a passion for garlic bread. And there are sombre moments, such as when Nicole is faced with the reality of paying bills and doing the big shop without mum by her side.
Cottriall's performance is engaging from start to finish. She is a natural comedic performer but can switch it up to serious before the audience has even noticed the transition - and her love for the music from which this show lends its name is obvious. The show also deals with issues surrounding identity, race and what it means to be from England, more specifically in this case from a town like Wigan, which has never felt more poignant.
There are quieter moments where it feels (God Save My) Northern Soul might benefit from an injection of urgency or even just a variety in tone but, for the most part, this is a wonderful portrayal of a young woman finding her way in the world a lot sooner than she thought she would have to. Northern soul fans will love it and so too should everyone else.
(God Save My) Northern Soul is playing at the Park Theatre until 20th September. For ticket information, see here.
Review: Tom Ambrose Photo: Mark Senior