Extra Dry theatre review: Portrait of addiction
Michelle Renee Johnson’s dark comedy replicates the mind of an alcoholic through personal but predictable confessions
In this short and not-so-sweet monologue, Michelle Renee Johnson claims at the beginning that this is a love letter to alcohol, a substance that allowed her to become the performer and writer that has now arrived at the Fringe. Very quickly, however, it becomes clear that this is a memoir of alcohol abuse; never outrageous nor darkly comic, it nevertheless expresses the treadmill of excessive drinking. The show’s structure, with multiple blackouts, stories pieced together after the fact and a general sense of shame, perfectly matches the routine of the heavy drinker.
By the end, Johnson admits that part of the reason for this show is to support her sobriety and this is a sincere and honest dissection of how alcoholism damaged her life. It begins with a sense of adventure, but descends rapidly into a carousel of drink/pass out/try to remember, rinse and repeat. She’s unsparing in the details, such as the smell of urine reminding her she had soiled herself the previous night or finding vomit in her hair. The structure does become predictable and the script doesn’t try to delve deeper into reasons for this problem drinking, leaving Extra Dry a little superficial. But it’s a bold attempt to tell a drunken tale soberly.
Extra Dry, Greenside Riddles Court, until 29 August, 3.05pm; picture: Diego Quintanar.