It’s Not About Coffee is written by and starring Sophia Hail and Jennifer Kehl. Zona is played by Hail an enthusiastic person about life who bounds into the underground coffee house and meets her co-worker Katherine played by Kehl.

Neither of the ladies is completely sure why they are there but it soon transpires that large sums of money were offered to them if they agreed to spend 60 days down there ready on a whim to make “the boss” a coffee of his choice if and when he might come down.

The story is set in a bunker, a mile underground in Hawaii. The pair are hired by a tech mogul and although the instruction manual the two ladies follow is clear, when they might be needed to make the coffee isn’t. Leaving them on high alert at all times, which causes friction between the two strangers.

On the surface it appears to be just an odd job advertisement that the pair have answered. However, as the conversation develops between Zona and Katherine it becomes clear that their rights as women have been slowly taken away in the world outside of that bunker and there’s a new ‘rule book’ in America that they are learning to adapt to and it’s leaving all women in a vulnerable position,rights and prospects taken being away from them.

In the current political climate in the USA at this time art is socially commenting and questioning what is happening and the future could look quite similar. It’s Not About the Coffee it’s about power and control by a wealthy male sector who are threatened by the very existence of women.

The play has a strong message of warning. The writing is dark and multi-layered. The length of the production would benefit from being edited down to around sixty minutes as in places it appeared to be time-filling dialogue irrelevant to the main storyline. Although for a debut play it has a future, especially in the World that’s changing at the moment and not in a progressive way either.

Hail and Kehl deserve to be proud of this piece and speaking out about the injustice and misogynistic attitudes many women face daily.

For more information about It’s Not About Coffee and future productions at Brockley Jack Theatre please use the link below.

Four Stars.

https://brockleyjack.co.uk/

Creative Team

Written by Sophia Hail and Jennifer Kehl

Directed by Sophia Hail

Lighting Designer and Operator: Ferdy Emmet

Sound Designer: Sophia Hail

Sound Operator: Austin Yan

Stage manager: Jolie Le Bell

Dramaturg: Evey Reidy

Presented by Little Coup Theatre Company

Cast:

Sophia Hail – Zona

Jennifer Kehl – Katherine

Austin Yang – voice over

Tuesday 15 – Saturday 19 July at 7.30pm

Running time: eighty- minutes, with no interval

Contains some strong language and brief flashing lights, 14+.