EDINBURGH 2023: Review: 30 AND OUT, Pleasance Courtyard

When we see coming out narratives in film, theatre, and TV, they usually feature a fresh-faced teen confessing their secret crush and coming out to their eventually supportive parents. Kit Sinclair’s 30 and Out takes a more adult approach - a real life story of coming out aged thirty, the show dives headfirst into queer sex, the club scene, homophobia, and relationships in a high energy hour of cabaret-style theatre.

As the show begins, Sinclair invites us into what initially appears to be an idyllic heterosexual household, complete with a delicately decorated cake and a bouquet of flowers. When the scene continues, however, this guide to being the perfect housewife is interrupted by female moans of pleasure - this eyebrow-raising, unexpected twist sets the tone. What follows is a combination of straightforward storytelling, voiceover interviews, movement sequences, ukulele… and eating out some fruit.

Sinclair is a captivating performer, oozing confidence and ease onstage while maintaining a vibrant energy throughout and easily shifting between awkward newly-out queer person and "daddy as fuck" lesbian. With the addition of slick, creative direction and movement direction from Charlotte Ive and Lolo Brow respectively, the show is never boring, constantly introducing new stories and new modes of telling them.

A big part of the joy of 30 and Out is the much-needed lesbian representation it offers, never shying away from specificity or honesty. The inclusion of interviews with lesbians from a range of different backgrounds has a huge impact, especially due to the fantastic creative captioning. This is a great example of incorporating access in a way that enhances the performance for all audience members.

Perhaps the show’s only minor issue is that its balance of seriousness - there’s a section about the grief of the Pulse shootings - and wackiness holds it back slightly from reaching the full potential of either side. It can’t quite become tear-jerkingly moving or shriekingly wild - but at the same time this balance is what keeps it so true to life.

30 and Out is a much-needed show for lesbian representation and coming out stories beyond the typical teen rom-com - for those who identify with this experience it’ll be hugely validating, while for those for whom the world of Doc Martins and She Bar is a little more foreign, it will be a real eye-opener. 

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