The award-winning HighRise Entertainment drop us into London's '90s Black-British bass music culture to give us this part-rave, part-drama that now tours the UK.
We are in a rave (there's a bar at the back!), we are filmed in their music videos, at the radio studios and often backstage. Later into the play, we get a small glimpse of the private life of Lil Miss Lady (MC Lady Lykez) in her apartment away from the clubs and studios.
The story starts with Lil Miss Lady as the 15-year-old schoolgirl being scouted. We then follow her life to the final 'rap-off' with the man who first spotted her, then got her pregnant and kindly abandoned her.
Lady Lykez, who also co-wrote the lyrics, is mesmerising. She's like pressing 3x speed on a track. Dominic Garfield, writer / director, gives her just enough character development that we can root for her, be gutted for her and celebrate at the end when she gets a break from the (female) DJ Harmony (Kaylee Kay).
A 105-minute show with no interval, yet the vibe never once flattened. I put it down to the constant live music (DJ Harmony: Kaylee Kay) and the MC on stage when the action took a break.
Blanka (Fahad Shaft) excels as the cool dude in black and bling. Hypez is sweet, funny and at his best snaking his way around the audience chatting up the girls and Twish Joshua Cameron plays his sidekick brilliantly. They're all super-talented MCs. The boys strut about, get their breaks and serve time for "whatever they did for cash" (Lil Miss Lady, being a teenager, is kept out of such details).
Then there's DJ Rat Aliaano El-Ali, whose mask worked great on the live-capture video (Aydan Tair). I loved the live images projected onto big screen as they're filmed up their noses, spitting into the lens. The video projections (video: Mary Melodies) are nostalgic and iconic: the closing of Woolworths, Blair's rise to fame, riots to name a few.
I went with a friend who said, "we got a zip-zap injection", which pretty much sums up our night; a lot of fun.
This is touring nationwide and I really wouldn't miss it. The Pit Barbican was sold out for the short run, and I imagine everywhere it now goes, there will be a packed dance-floor of people, bobbing in a rave, rooting for Lil Miss Lady as she smashes the music scene.