Review: CUNCH, Written on the Waves (Online)

CUNCH is the final audio play in the first series of ‘Written in the Waves’, which has been created in response to the Covid-19 Pandemic. 

Written by Marika McKennell and directed by Thomas Bailey, CUNCH tells the story of two teens: Janie (McKennell) and Lolita (Alice Vilanculo), who get caught up in County Lines drug running.

Starring alongside McKennell and Vilanculo in the small cast are: Dominic Applewhite as Scratch/Buyer and Katy Secombe as Yaga/Dog Walker/Receptionist.

The play’s storyline touches on the hard-hitting issues with County Lines; how naive the people involved can be and how they don’t realise that they are in too deep until it is too late. 

As an audio play, it works nicely as although there is a large amount of dialogue, the story is easy to follow. The sound effects used also enhance the piece. At 40 minutes, the running time is just right for an audio piece as well. 

McKennell and Vilanculo are excellent in their portrayal of friends, Janie and Lolita. They allow you to imagine what they look like and through their acting, you create a clear picture in your mind’s eye of who they are. McKennell does particularly well when, for the majority of the piece, she is self-assured and confident but at the end, when she has to flip to being scared, she does so brilliantly. You can really hear the emotion in her voice and her attempts to remain calm when fear is overriding. 

Vilanculo, whether intended or not, is funny. She is relatable and you can tell that she has been bought along as the friend for support. You can tell she doesn’t want to be there: she complains about the bus price, that she can’t use an oyster card and just isn’t suited to countryside. 

Both Seycombe and Applewhite also give excellent turns in their supporting multi-roles. You can’t always tell that it is them playing the other characters, which is impressive. 

CUNCH is a good listen and most importantly, it is a vital story to be told and should be listened to on that merit alone.

**** Four stars

Reviewed by: Emma Littler

CUNCH is available to listen to now here.