Thirty Two Teeth

To say that Thirty Two Teeth is a slow burner would be a significant understatement. The play, based on the bizarre premise that people live or die because of the Tooth Fairy, only really gets going towards the end of the second half – by which time the majority of the audience are practically comatose.

Created by Jam Jar Productions, who were commended last year for their distinctly modern fairy-tale, Following Wendy, the primary problem with this year’s offering is that the story just isn’t engaging enough. Three teenage friends hatch a plan to kidnap the Tooth Fairy so that one of them, Samuel, can barter for the life of his premature baby brother, who is hanging on in hospital. However, it transpires that Samuel does not have his brother’s best interests at heart and the group begin to argue over the moral validity of their actions.

Fairy-tales, though fantastical in nature, succeed when their supernatural elements do not detract from the fundamentally human morals that underlie them. In the case of Thirty Two Teeth, any human interest is drowned out by the ridiculous notion that the Tooth Fairy can be bribed with a couple of incisors and a few molars.

Though the actors in this production battle valiantly to bring some life to the tedious script they have been given, it is clear that—unlike The Tooth Fairy featured in Thirty Two Teeth—they are not miracle workers.