★★
A collective of 18-26 year olds, Tip Top Theatre Collective bring their second show Growing Pains to Paradise in The Vault as part of this year’s Edinburgh Fringe. Written by Fionn Donnelly, it follows Tessa (also played by Donnelly) as she tries to find her feet as a drama teacher after her Fringe debut play received poor reviews from critics.
The four pupils that Tessa is teaching GCSE drama to—Poppy, Kirsty (Miranda McEwen), Angel (Angel Johnson) and Alan (Campbell Maddox) —are brilliantly written and brought to life by great acting. At first glance, they seem like surly, unfocused teenagers, but when we scratch the surface, we see they are dealing with a myriad of issues, including sexuality, undiagnosed disability, and financial worries. Sharing their stories with Tessa allows them to bond with her, and helps her to gain respect from them, demonstrating her growth as a teacher.
Tessa’s character arc is conveyed well, and it is lovely to watch her grow as a teacher. However, as a character, it is difficult to warm to her. She often narrates her most sarcastic and pessimistic inner thoughts to the audience, but this happens too frequently and becomes grating quite quickly. She does deliver some witty one-liners, but lots don’t land, which is partly down to their rushed delivery. A few pauses between her lines would be very beneficial, and would help to slow down the dialogue.
In addition to showing Tessa’s development, Growing Pains shows how much teaching differs from other careers and accurately depicts its struggles. Over a dinner party, her friends discuss going away on holiday, but Tessa reminds them she can only go during school holidays. Her friends are also shocked that after three years she hasn’t been promoted, which is usual within teaching careers. Similarly, Tessa struggles with the bureaucracy of the school system. Their resources are inadequate, and Tessa is told off by the head teacher because she gives money to a pupil whose parents can’t afford to buy her shoes. The complaints from parents are constant, with one family accusing her of being homophobic as she told a child to speak to her mum and dad when they had two dads. The play really highlights the difficulty of teaching and nurturing children in an underfunded and bureaucratic system.
There’s lots of good things in Growing Pains, but overall, it feels under-rehearsed. The actors frequently stumble over their lines and there are moments where they don’t seem to know where they are going next. The ending scenes in particular are disappointing. Tessa has gone through great character development where she gets through to the students and garners some respect, but this is undermined in the scene where Poppy storms out. It is not realistic to see the teenagers commanding their teacher to go out to comfort her, and the teacher talking to them as if they were her friends. There is not a clear conclusion to the play, and it seems to stop in the middle of a scene. When the lights come up, the audience are unsure whether to clap and are left feeling unsatisfied.
It’s important to remember that this is only the company’s second show, and they have plenty of room to grow. Tip Top Theatre Collective are clearly a talented bunch, and with more rehearsal time and some additional refining of the script, Growing Pains could be a great show, relatable to teachers and young people alike.
Growing Pains will be performed at Paradise in The Vault until 24 August (not 10, 17) as part of Edinburgh Fringe
Words by Ellen Leslie
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