Bitch Boxer: One Woman’s Dream of Boxing for Team GB

David Levelsey reviews the enthralling, one woman show Bitch Boxer at Warwick Arts Centre, detailing the highs and lows of training as a female boxer for the Olympics.

When Charlotte Josephine bounds onstage to begin her one-woman monologue, you can tell immediately she is a born performer. I will, however, admit to an early cynicism: she had the charm, energy and consistency of a trained actress and I feared that she, like many other actresses I have watched who have clearly gone through the big drama schools, might have lost something of her raw heart and sincerity. However, my initial doubts evaporated almost immediately, for Bitch Boxer leaves you with a feeling of inner satisfaction, warmth and positivity. It is so rare to see a monologue about personal success and triumph, so the encounter is something like a feel-good vitamin.

Bitch Boxer first started making the rounds as part of the Old Vic New Voices season at the Fringe this year, one of a series of incredible short pieces of new writing, of which One Hour Only was a personal favourite. This is my first time watching this monologue, however, and I must say considering it has been on for almost a year it remains remarkably alive. The performance is playful, engaging and full of love, which lets you know that both the director and performer have completely accepted what the piece is doing, saying and showing. Not once does it feel like there is a jarring idea of what should occur onstage and nor does the actress seem uncomfortable (helped, I suppose, by the fact she wrote it) which is particularly hard to do when you are stood alone, on a stage, beneath the lights.

The piece recounts the rise of Chloe, a young woman who is making her forays into the boxing world with the aim of competing at the Olympics. This story of difficult relationships with men – whether they be deceased fathers or worried boyfriends – and about what it is to be young nowadays, follows in a way that is far less patronising than the synopsis sounds; this is not a monologue that shoves themes or ideas down your throat, it merely touches on things to consider in the future. The director, Bryony Shanahan imbues a strong text with a real sense of journey and creates an impressive physical language for Charlotte Josephine, as she plays an assortment of different parts each with their own vocabulary of movements.

Bitch Boxer is a testament to how a few people and a minimal set can get a maximum, emotional impact. Budgets and high production qualities are not what make this show powerful. It’s the use of music and the way people interact with music; the movement drawn from the way we move; the stories that speak to everyone, regardless of how they identify with the central character, all these things that draw you in, capture you in its core, and then spit you out with a feeling of optimism that people can have a happy ending.

Bitch Boxer was part of the (L)one season of events at Warwick Arts Centre, showcasing single person performances. See the website for upcoming events in the series.