"Women You Know". Burton Taylor Studio.

I’ve known You’re So Vain by Carly Simon for most of my life, and until tonight I always thought it was about Warren Beatty. Women You Know made me realise that’s an illusion. It’s a woman singing about another woman. And when she says those lines I’d previously seen as damning accusations (“You’re so vain”, “I bet you think this song is about you”) she’s not accusing. She’s celebrating.

This is a short, sharp shock of a show. Simultaneously dirty and effortlessly smart, it features two women raking over their messy but somehow incredibly cool lives. They share in-jokes about guys called Greg, they remember their embarrassing first kisses, and they open their hearts to each other in ways only the closest of friends can, with shortcuts of language that we, the audience, are just about allowed to share. The men who are unwary enough to wander across their lives and beds are unremittingly witless and incapable of matching the cynical insights of the two women (who are never named by the way, giving them semi-mythical status). In fact, about the most romantic thing in the whole show is A Woman’s brilliant monologue about a guy called Josh who showed how much he cared by sticking a finger up her bum.

Coco Cottam and Sorcha Finan boss the BT as A Woman and Another Woman. There were some genuinely funny moments as well as equally genuine despair. And it was great to see the place packed with a whooping crowd.

Having said all the above, it’s not perfect. There’s little in the way of dramatic progression (but that’s deliberate), and I did wish they’d speak up at times. Also, what’s with not having programmes? This is the second play I’ve seen in a row where the audience has to leave with no idea of who they’ve just seen, or who made it all possible. Programmes don’t even need to be printed. How hard is it to upload a PDF and stick a QR code on the wall? If you’re making art, then please let us know the artist. You've earned it. This song is about you. 

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