Hungry

by Chris Bush

"I'd watch you eat. I'd eat you up. You're not like them, are you? You're real."Lori is a professional chef. Bex waits tables to make ends meet. One night together in a walk-in fridge and the rest is history.Lori has big plans, but Bex is struggling. If we are what we eat, then Bex is in real trouble. It's not her fault though – the system is rigged. No-one on minimum wage and zero hours has the headspace to make their own yoghurt.Chris Bush's Hungry is a play about food, love, class and grief in a world where there's little left to savour.It was premiered by Paines Plough on a UK tour in July 2021.

Genres: Plays

80 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 5, 2021

Reviews

[Charlie Jackson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Straight from the National Theatre bookstore in London 💜💜💜 Really interesting commentary on class, race, and love all through the lens of food.

[BookyMonster · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was lucky enough to catch this at the Edinburgh Fringe 2022 and found it genuinely thought-provoking and moving. I think the way the interplay of class, race and colonialism within Lori and Bex's relationship is analysed through food is so clever. I have not seen/read another play that tackles these themes as skilfully as Bush does.

My one major criticism is that Bex's explosive monologue in the penultimate scene is just a tad too on the nose for my taste and felt a bit like a self-indulgent rant on the writer's part. Indeed, we find out after the monologue is delivered that Bex does not speak the monologue out loud to Lori which explains the sprawling, uninhibited nature of it. I do not like this twist as I feel it is a bit of a cheap "and it was all a dream" moment where a conclusion could have been reached. This is perhaps an acknowlegdement of the impossibility of resolution to these problems on a societal scale, but I still stand by my gripe.

What I particularly love about the play though is its nuances in depicting the two women and their relationship. Both characters are partly right and partly wrong and you still get a strong sense of their love for one another. Overall, I highly recommend reading the play and going to see it if you can!

[Maja Skrlj-Tufegdzic · Rating 5 out of 5]

food intermingling with love, grief, culture, acceptance
Simple, deep, philosophical…

wish I could see it in the theatre one day soon

Lots of food for thoughts…

“ Taste and smell are powerful and nostalgic senses, possessing the ability to transport us through space and time in a mouthful.“

“You can’t make people better, but what if I was enough already?… if I can’t find a way to love you and love myself at the same time then I know what I have to do…. “

[Chidi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought this playbook from Soho Theatre while seeing a different play. I am usually not one for reading plays but this is amazing. A story of love and food and all the ways these can be perverted and co-opted by racism, classism and fatphobia. I would love to see it in production one day as I missed the first run in 2021. 10/10.

[Ben Willows · Rating 5 out of 5]

We express and invest and divulge so much in the food we make for others and eat for ourselves. This is a beautiful play, delving into the depths of class and relationship tensions, but never letting the issues overwhelming the beautifully drawn characters. An execeptional play

[antonia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved reading this play!! The messages are so important behind it, honestly worth a read.

[Jess Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love the depiction of a lesbian relationship without it being the focus of the story, the world really needs more of it!