30 – 31 July
Greedy Pig Theatre company concentrate on LGBTQI+, gender-based and feminist stories. Written and performed by Rhys Myhill, as Jamie, and directed by Lex Kaby, My Dad is an unconventional tale, albeit one based on a true story. The dad in question is Myhill’s own, who has transitioned.
The play arrives in the wake of recent social debates about the transgender experience. We meet Jamie, and his partner Jez sensitively played throughout by Mollie Biddlecombe, as they prepare to become parents and, critically, for Jamie to become a dad himself. How he will approach this, and tell his dad Michael, now called Mia, forms the basis of the story.
The play’s strength stems from the authenticity of this experience. Carys Daniels as Mia is extraordinarily convincing, both in scenes prior to transitioning and when living at home with Jamie, and later. The Alma Theatre is a tightly hemmed-in space, and there is no room for lack of credibility. Daniels’ Michael and Mia are well-drawn characters and avoid stereotyping. They can be funny, irascible, and downright irritating, just like real people are.
Although billed as a laugh out loud comedy, the narrative worked best when exploring the relationships between the three characters, and there were too many moments when it tried too hard to be funny. Jamie practises being a dad with an ersatz baby called Pippin carried in a front papoose, and although this occasionally helped break the tension and generated great eye rolling from Mia, the device became strained.
A digital display placed above the actors’ heads counted down to the birth, as well as going back in time, including to July 1991 when Michael/Mia is discovered by their own father experimenting with dressing up and makeup. Although sometimes informative, the repetition was periodically confusing and again would have been better used more sparingly. However the set worked well in the tiny space, and stage management was restricted to moving a door around, with the performers making the most of the space available.
I found the music choices mostly disappointingly obvious and cliched (David Bowie’s ‘Changes’) although the moment when Kez and Jamie entertain Mia and mistakenly play Boney M’s ‘Daddy Cool’ was excruciatingly, hilariously awkward.
The story is well told and received by an appreciative audience, and there is a good play here, but it needs much more judicious editing. At two hours long with an interval, it was far too wordy. The one hugely powerful moment occurred when Daniels as Mia explodes in rage at the difficulties of being seen as a woman. It is clear this speech came from a real-life experience and was a hard listen.
Greedy Pig’s mission is to make joyous and empowering shows highlighting discussions surrounding gender and sexuality and to make a positive impact. The audience were asked afterwards to explore the Safe Spaces initiative in Bristol designed to counter transphobia.
I look forward to their next production and to being further surprised and educated.
★★★☆☆ Bryan J Mason, 31 July 2025
Photography credit: Douglas Murdoch
