Comedic yet tender, 'Nanny' premieres in Plymouth

Show will leave you smiling

Arriving at the Drum, the air was filled with the slightly bemusing sound of children’s chatter and laughter.

This turned out to be the backdrop for the story of two nannies, Amy and Leanne, in the world premier of 'Nanny' from Folio Theatre Company.

A wannabe comedy/entertainer duo, intent on following in the footsteps of their heroes French & Saunders, Wood & Walters, Mel & Sue, and Morecombe and Wise, and best of friends since they were 10.

The show begins with Amy, endearing and unstoppable, provocatively dancing while singing the Hokey Cokey, and thencontinues at break-neck speed with sporadic nursery rhymes, a reminder that the Nannies are at a ‘play and stay’ with their children in a chapel.

There are laughs a-plenty, mostly from co-writer Alana Ramsey’s character Amy, but poignancy too, as the two girls find themselves nannies under duress,

Ahead of an imminent stint at the Edinburgh Festival, they are both hugely frustrated at not having been discovered yet, and stoically suffer the torture of their employer’s ineptitude as parents, safe in the knowledge that they, of course, know better. 

The backwards and forwards dialogue between these two likeable friends, is fast paced and convincingly fluent. They know the ins and outs of each other’s lives and are there for each other every step of the way. That is until Leanne’s multi-millionaire divorced employer decides to move to New York and she feels it would also be the best move for her non-existent career prospects. This leaves Amy in the lurch, with the Edinburgh gig and her wedding looming on the near horizon.

Fast forward two years, and we find Leanne returned from New York, a wiser and kinder friend than she had been. Now also having arranged a surprise birthday trip to Paris that Amy had previously longed for as her ‘hen’ do. 

Amy now has a baby daughter herself, an obvious accident and resulting in a cancelled wedding, and her evolving into the kind of mum she had disparaged in the opening scenes.

Lizzie Stokes and Alana Ramsey work well together and I found them a joy to watch. They achieved a perfect balance between comedy quips, tender moments and bursts of song to make the show easily enjoyable, and with no need for any checking of your watch.

Billed as a comedy play with songs, it is exactly that. I left the theatre feeling a little lighter and with a smile on my face.