Fuck You! You Fucking Perv!

Juried Series

With a title as in-your-face as Leslie Baker’s look at long standing mental health issues that have been caused as a result of childhood sexual abuse, you should know full well that what you’re going to get is going to be a provocation. And this one really works.

A one woman show with astounding tech credits, Baker takes the stage as a schizophrenic woman trying to cope with her past and present, bouncing, screaming, and sometimes tap dancing around the stage like a ball of pure energy. She cracks horrible jokes in bad taste about pedophilia, numerous times she talks about and mimics killing herself, and for a few fleeting bursts there are moments of perfect, restrained lucidity and reflection.

It’s impossible to tell where Baker will head next, and the staging here is minimalist and complex at the same time. There are tons of moving parts to the show (including sometimes elaborate set pieces for such a small show in a small space) and impeccable sound and lighting design that helps to bring everything to life.

It’s definitely not for everyone, and the dialogue and soundscapes left some in the audience murmuring if it was all necessary. Those people just didn’t get the point of what was going on. It’s a tightly wound look at trauma and its long term aftermath glimpsed through a non-judgmental portrait of mental illness.

Remaining performances at Lower Ossington Studio Theatre (100A Ossington Avenue):

Tuesday August 12, 4:00pm
Wednesday August 13, 6:00pm
Thursday August 14, 8:00pm
Saturday August 16, 10:00pm
Sunday August 17, 3:00pm