Jamie Loftus: Boss, Whom is Girl

Pleasance Courtyard (Venue 33) ★★★

A non-disclosure agreement awaits you upon arrival to Jamie Loftus’ bonkers show, which is ironic, as any effort at summary of this hour risks seeing you dismissed as a mad person.

Sending up Silicon Valley’s rapacious greed and ethics, playing on fears about artificial intelligence and most obviously, parodying the “lean in” culture advanced by high-profile corporate women like Facebook’s Sheryl Sandberg, Boss, Whom is Girl is cartoonishly satirical and an avant-garde treat. Ferociously intense, while

prey to every hippy fad and lifestyle boost going, Loftus’ alter-ego Shell Gasolinesandwich, founder of Peepee Smarthomes, a technology that is absolutely not about spying on its users or participating in genocidal, vocational cleansing, presents a conference for prospective Girl Bosses and their male allies.

Even as she spouts entrepreneurial jargon and selfdefeating feminist sloganeering, Loftus creates a fully realised world. Having internalised issues with her condescending father and late brother, she manifests them in a stridency to succeed, disregard for her dispensable male employees and a sadistic relationship with her AI subordinate Patricia.

You’ll intuit Boss’ ending perhaps, the seeds having been deliberately placed, but probably not the manner of it. Power bitch energy indeed.

JAY RICHARDSON

Until 26 August. Today 10:45pm