Leather

Leather is the tale of a heist gone wrong and the subsequent unravelling of the lives of everyone involved. The Boss—a drugs maven with a penchant for sexual favours under his desk—discovers that a van full of leather sofas he has been planning to sell has, in fact, been stolen by the bumbling Gaius and his Australian cowboy sidekick. The Australian cowboy is sleeping with Gaius' girlfriend, who happens to be the girl under the desk. We also meet a prostitute-visiting vet with sexual fantasies about undiscovered species of animals. Got it?

A plot based around sofas sounds far from exciting and, despite near hysterical performances from most of the cast, this production is indeed dull and derivative – nor can it be rescued by the frankly bizarre storyline. It doesn't help that after each scene change—that is, turning the sofa 90 degrees to signify a different room—the characters not involved in the scene stand with a pair of tights over their face, which is simply off-putting. The acting is utterly self-conscious but, unfortunately, the caricatures created seem to be unintentional. The female characters are essentially accessories: a girlfriend who does nothing but snort coke, cry, and wail "I love you"; a quick-talking prostitute. There's nothing new here. 

It's shows like this, with their emphasis on the absurd and the edgy, that make people wince at the mention of student theatre. There's certainly enthusiasm on display, but the risible content just cannot be saved by the uncontrolled explosions of energy from the young cast.