A Guide to Second Date Sex

Rachel Hirons' very funny play A Guide to Second Date Sex has a simple but ruthlessly effective concept. A young couple, meeting for the second time in the guy’s bedroom, play out an elaborate and socially inept mating ritual, and we hear exactly what’s going on in their heads on the show’s soundtrack. Cue awful social awkwardness, crippling self-doubt and the ecstasy of success – all of which raises guffaws from the audience.

In the show’s programme sheet, theatre company Dirty Stop-Out claims to specialise in rude, crude and voyeuristic comedy, and that’s a perfect description of what’s going on here. They’re unafraid to tackle the messy realities of sexual relationships; genital cleanliness and shaving both get more than a look in, often making the audience cringe in delight. And the show is unflinchingly honest in its appraisal of the couple’s insecurities, mistrust of each other and tense negotiations of social rules. It’s funny because it’s so true.

Although the writing is good, the performances let things down slightly. Amy Butterworth is confident and convincing as a hesitant Laura, and Thomas O’Connell is a likeable but bumbling Ryan, but both actors sometimes swallow their lines, or talk over audience laughter, with the result that much of what’s probably good material goes unheard. And although it’s undeniably funny, it’s not much more: this might have been the perfect set-up for a darker exploration of sex and desire, but instead things are kept on a pretty light, superficial level.

Still, it’s an effective and enjoyable show – as long as you’re prepared to squirm.