.png)
REVIEW | The Revlon Girl, Park Theatre - London
AD | Tickets gifted in exchange of an honest review. All views are our own
It’s not often that every element of a theatrical production comes together quite so perfectly, but that’s precisely what happens in “The Revlon Girl” at London’s Park Theatre. Funny, heart-breaking, confrontational and deeply compassionate, this is an extraordinary piece of theatre.
Written by Neil Anthony Docking, the play returns to the stage to mark the 60th anniversary of the Aberfan disaster, when a colliery spoil tip collapsed onto the Welsh village of Aberfan on 21st October 1966, killing 144 people, including 116 children.
Set eight months after the tragedy, the play centres on a group of bereaved mothers who meet every Tuesday evening at the Aberfan Hotel. It’s a place where they can talk honestly and openly, away from judgement. On this particular evening, a representative from Revlon is visiting to give them a beauty tutorial. It sounds like an unlikely premise for a play about grief, but Docking’s stunning script explores the complexities of loss with remarkable sensitivity, honesty and humour. The naturalistic dialogue is superb, and every character feels fully fleshed out and lived-in. These are real, complicated women, each dealing with an unimaginable tragedy in her own way.
What impressed me most about the writing was its refusal to sentimentalise grief. Docking allows characters to be angry, bitter, confrontational, funny and occasionally unreasonable. Their exchanges can be wonderfully barbed and entertaining, but the unspoken tension constantly threatens to erupt. It’s a production that understands grief isn’t a single emotion, but a complicated, often contradictory experience in which laughter and despair can exist side by side.
Under Maxine Evans’ assured direction, the shifts between humour and anguished pain are handled beautifully, allowing the emotional impact to emerge naturally from the writing and performances. The five performers are perfectly cast, delivering gripping, beautifully nuanced performances that are as comic as they are poignant.
Rona (Mirain Haf Roberts) is a particularly striking presence, played with robust energy and a wonderfully sharp wit. Direct and occasionally abrasive, she’s not afraid to speak her mind, but Roberts brings an underlying awareness to the role that prevents Revlon (played by Antonia Kinlay) from becoming simply the group’s provocateur. Sian (Charlotte Gray) is the level-headed peacemaker who desperately tries to maintain harmony between her friends. Gray beautifully captures Sian’s determination to keep things pleasant, even as her own grief, simmering beneath the surface, threatens to overwhelm her. Jean (Llinos Daniel) is the stoic, deeply religious member of the group, married to a vicar and desperately needing to believe there’s some meaning behind the tragedy. Daniel sensitively conveys a woman clinging to her faith in the face of unimaginable loss.
Maralyn (Hedydd Dylan), meanwhile, has barely left the house since losing both her daughters, all but turning her back on her friends and community. Dylan delivers a deeply affecting portrayal of a woman whose grief has left her isolated from the very people who might understand her pain. Into this emotionally charged gathering steps the Revlon representative (Antonia Kinlay), an unwitting intruder who arrives with the best of intentions. Kinlay brings warmth and vulnerability to the role, gradually revealing a painful personal history that connects her to the women in unexpected ways. The chemistry between the performers is exceptional, and their ability to move effortlessly between comedy and raw emotion makes the relationships utterly believable.
The staging is equally effective. The minimal set offers just enough detail to suggest a modest room above a Welsh hotel pub, while a remarkably convincing leaking roof helps ground the action in stark reality. The simplicity of the design keeps our attention firmly on the characters and their stories.
By the end, half the audience were in tears, including me. It’s rare to encounter a production that manages to be so consistently entertaining while dealing with such devastating subject matter.
Overall, “The Revlon Girl” is an exceptional production in which the writing, direction, performances and staging are perfectly aligned. Funny, poignant, and utterly compelling, it’s theatre at its very best. My only criticism? I can’t award it more than five stars.
★★★★★
“The Revlon Girl” plays at Park Theatre, London, until 14th November 2026:
