Written by Bibi Lucille and directed by Anastasia Bunce, 'Meat Cute' is a one-woman comedy play which explores themes of identity, self-realisation, feminism and belonging in todays world. After a successful stint at Fringe festivals and after receiving glowing reviews from audiences, Meat Cute (The Offies 2021 finalist) returns to The Vaults Festival this year before turning the show into a short film. Meat Cute will be performed in the Cage at The Vaults Festival at 4:40pm on the 11th and 12th March. Ahead of its performances dates, I spoke to writer Bibi Lucille to find out more information about this exciting and thought-provoking play.
Q: Can you tell us a little bit about the play?
A: Meat Cute follows the story of 25 year old Lena as she attempts to convert all her tinder dates to veganism as a form of activism. On her quest to turn every man plant-based, a trail of chaos is left behind. fourteen dates later, a broken family, a Pomeranian called Mozart and an eviction notice, is this rebellion or simply a cry for help? Meat Cute asks: how does a 25-year-old woman navigate a world governed by masculinity and violence, and, how far is too far?
Q: What was your inspiration for writing this play?
A: My inspiration for writing Meat Cute all began in Annie's garden over lockdown (and a bottle or two of wine). Annie's theatre company 'Patch Plays' has always run with the theme of spreading awareness for veganism and the environment. When she asked me to write something for her scratch night, I was pretty hesitant. All my writing had remained in a folder labelled 'PRIVATE' deep in the depths of my laptop. I asked her "what would I even write about?" and she replied "write about how you try and turn every man you date vegan". I laughed it off and eight hours later, I was awake at 5am (still drunk, mind you) and had started furiously drafting the first ten minutes on my notes app. When the short stand-up piece was received well to audiences, I gained enough confidence to attempt a full show. I've always loved comedy and fusing that with my passion for animal rights made the entire writing journey a joy. A lot of it comes from the heart.
Q: How do you want audience members to feel after watching this play?
A: I truly hope audience members will walk away from the play feeling a whole range of conflicting emotions - joy, amusement and anger. My aim for Meat Cute is to challenge and address controversial topics in a non-preachy, comedic way. I also hope that the audience will feel inspired to be an activist themselves, for whatever cause they are passionate about.
Q: Why do you think plays with such important and thought provoking messages are so important at this current time?
A: Any form of art that holds a message is, I believe, the crux of understanding human nature. Theatre creates a space that welcomes and encourages empathy as we become the voyeur to someone else's story. It can slide us right into the shoes of someone who is completely different from us. I think it's especially important at this current time because Western society idealises and glamorises individualism to the point where we're becoming completely apathetic to each other. Theatre seems to be the place that brings us back together.
Q: What can we expect from 'Meat Cute'?
A: You can expect whiskey, Pomeranians, boob grabbing and an unexpected intervention hosted by fourteen tinder dates. Meat Cute divers into Lena's life as things unravel over the course of three very dramatic months as she tries to veganise every man she dates. What could possibly go wrong?
For more information, or to purchase tickets, head over to The Vaults website here.
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