Princess Therapy
Etcetera Theatre
17th January 2014

★★★★☆

Some of the most popular fairytales don't really belong to anyone, not any more. They've been passed down for centuries, told and retold - but arguably, it was the Grimm brothers who put pen to paper to some of the most iconic versions of these stories. Disney princesses - with big puffy ball gowns and plenty of magic - do have their place. But there's something irresistible about the early 19th-century tales where the protagonists overcome adversity but do not necessarily forgive and forget. Heroes don't always have to be magnanimous. They just have to win.

Alexandra Bergeron and Maud Madlyn clearly share this love of Wilheim and Jacob's writings, for their new play, Princess Therapy, is heavily inspired by their works. In a move that would have Uncle Walt spinning in his grave, three well-known princesses - Snow White (Madlyn), Belle (Bergeron) and Cinderella (Charley Willow) are being held in a psychiatric treatment facility, having committed violent crimes.

Take a young girl, stick a tiara on her head and give her a castle to live in, and this doesn't change who she is, or how she feels. Princess Therapy takes the Grimms' idea of comeuppance for villains, and goes further, exploring the scars left by trauma and how these can't just be washed over by vibrant technicolor. The common denominator here isn't their title, but a difficult childhood - Snow White may come across as knowingly evil, but when the mother figure in your life tries to repeatedly kill you, of course that's going to lead to issues. Being abused by ugly stepsisters, being sent to live with a beast - none of the royal ladies have had an easy start in life, and it's only now they're coming to terms with that.

There's a certain amount of bleakness - mental illness is briefly implied but the writers, and director Charlotte Ives, never allows it to dominate, rejecting the "mad or bad" labels that usually get foisted upon female offenders for something more subtle and understanding. And more's the better, real insanity fits less well alongside these tales than it does in reworkings of little girl lost stories - look at America McGee's Alice or the terrifying and bafflingly U-rated Return to Oz.

Despite this, Princess Therapy has plenty of laughs. Snow White is outwardly lazy and contemptuous, Belle is ridiculously happy and easy to please, Cinderella is anxious, but more balanced, the anchor for the trio, helping to ensure the different personalities survive in the same room. True, the trio may live up to their archetypes, painted in broad strokes, but although the characters are frequently played for comic effect, they all come across as well-defined, with a believable dynamic. Snow White's drunken confessions, Cinderella's anxious ramblings, Belle's unenthused yoga - a lot of thought has gone into getting the mannerisms just so.

The performers dress in black, their clothes dull and unglamorous - well, there must be consequences for violent crime, even for royalty - but never blend into the background. Their personalities are distinct and loud, with a different coloured ribbon in each woman's hair enough to separate them out. It's a minimalistic approach, and it suits the story and the venue well. It also befits the idea of dehumanisation and predestiny well. They may have acted out once their stories ended but all their first gasp of self-determination has done is land them in another narrative, again controlled by someone else.

In general Ives has a good oversight of the bigger picture, and that's why this is such an appealing piece. There's a grasp of subtext and a natural empathy to what she has done. Technically, though, the short scene changes do feel overlong - part of this is down to using the audience's exit as a stage exit, and not turning off the lights outside - the sudden jolt of brightness breaking the blackouts.

Princess Therapy doesn't try to say anything groundbreaking or new, but it's a respectful twist on the classics, performed with emotion and style. Part of the Etcetera Theatre's Pay Nothing Play Anything festival, this short run to test the waters makes us think there will be a happy ever after for Slice of Gut.

Princess Therapy opened on 17th January and runs until 19th January 2014 at the Etcetera Theatre.

Nearest tube station: Camden Town (Northern)