Dancing Shoes - Traverse Theatre Review

Review by Jen

Dancing Shoes by Stephen Christopher and Graeme Smith, directed by Brian Logan, tells the story of three unlikely friends who meet at an addiction support group. Donny, the eldest of the trio, has a guilty pleasure: when nobody is watching, he takes off his shoes and socks and dances freely around his house. But what begins as a private ritual goes public when Jay posts his dancing online, transforming the introverted Donny into a viral sensation, and not in a good way. It’s a story about recovery, of course, but it’s also about betrayal, forgiveness and the importance of companionship through the good times and the bad.

Photo by Tommy Ga-Ken Wan.

As the ‘male loneliness epidemic’ continues to affect men around the world, this play feels incredibly topical and important. Donny, Jay and Craig are three men who are frightened to connect, initially cringing away from the word ‘friendship’, but who come to learn that they desperately need each other. They begin to hold ‘meetings before the meetings’ at the community centre they attend, with Donny supplying a new box of chocolates every session, and soon end up spending most of their time together. Through a mixture of scenes, monologues and direct address, with expertly dynamic direction from Brian Logan, we see that these men have formed a profound bond, a solace from the ‘empty days’ that can prove so difficult for those in recovery. Its three actors, Stephen Docherty, Lee Harris and Craig McLean, are superb: McLean’s Jay is a lively and outspoken young man, an antidote to the more serious and sardonic Craig, played by Lee Harris. For me, Stephen Docherty as Donny was the highlight of the performance. He is as hilarious as he is endearing, portraying the unique and whimsical character of Donny with beautiful nuance. One minute a kooky old man dancing in his kitchen and obsessed with spaghetti bolognese, the next a self-effacing son grieving his mother, he wins the audience’s hearts with ease. When he takes to a nightclub stage at the play’s ending, we are genuinely concerned for him, and when Craig and Jay join him for a rousing finale (with clever choreography from Jack Webb), it is impossible not to join in. All three actors are energetic and comedically intelligent: their timing is perfect, and their connection onstage is palpable. The result is an irresistibly hopeful and contagiously funny ode to friendship, laughter and the power of dancing in even the most difficult circumstances.

A sparse set design from Heather Grace Currie and lighting from Renny Robertson bring us from community hall to park, living room, corner shop and even a nightclub. The story is fast-paced, and Docherty, Harris and McLean guide us through the narrative with ease, stepping in and out of each scene to involve the audience and provide hindsight on its events. This isn’t a style of theatre I typically enjoy, preferring to be immersed in the story, but I have to admit it was very effective. By framing the narrative and repeatedly breaking and reinstating the fourth wall, the play becomes both entertaining and informative. Dancing Shoes is a testament to what a small but talented production team can create, and a marvellous example of small-scale theatre at its finest.

Photo by Tommy Ga-Ken Wan.

A particularly interesting choice for me was the play’s absolute refusal to give backstory to its characters: as they set up the story, Jay (Craig McLean) is berated by Craig (Lee Harris) for showing the audience pictures of his daughter to inspire pathos. Donny (Stephen Docherty), too, keeps trying to share his ‘childhood trauma’, but his attempt is consistently nipped in the bud. It seems that the writers want to avoid the graphic, tragic and gratuitous content often used in fictional portrayals of addiction, instead allowing the characters to stand as individuals. By obscuring the circumstances that led these men to addiction, Dancing Shoes gives us three characters who can only exist in the 70 minutes we share with them. Jay, so desperate to share his backstory, is eventually given the opportunity to, but turns it down. Instead, he tells Craig that the audience ‘can take us as we are’. Its message is clear: these are not three addicts, but three humans. They have suffered and will likely go on to suffer; the play is careful not to suggest that wearing sparkly shoes and dancing with your friends is an all-purpose miracle cure to the uniquely difficult experience of addiction. Instead, Dancing Shoes is sensitively optimistic that things can change for its characters, that with the structure of the community centre they attend, the dedication of the social workers who support them and the friendships they have formed, their lives can vastly improve.

And improve they certainly do! Donny (Stephen Docherty) ends the play as a certified Zumba instructor, with Jay (Craig McLean) as his manager; the pair bring exercise classes to community centres far and wide. A little far-fetched, some might say, but a very welcome conclusion for the audience that has come to love these characters. It is through Lee Harris as Craig, ever the grounding force of the play who cuts to the core of its subject matter, that we understand what these men have really gained is a sense of purpose. He refuses to let the audience believe that dancing has rid these men of their addiction problems, or that they remain clean and sober for the rest of their lives. Dancing Shoes does not suggest that there is an easy answer – beating addiction is a long and arduous process, but it may be easier with good companions and hobbies you genuinely love. We leave the show believing in the power of camaraderie, trust and human connection. It is not the dancing shoes, but who we dance with, that truly keeps us going.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Dancing Shoes runs until December 20th at the Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh. Tickets are available from https://www.traverse.co.uk/whats-on/event/dancing-shoes-autumn-25

Photo by Tommy Ga-Ken Wan.