REALLY GOOD EXPOSURE DEMANDS REFLECTION ON HOW WE VIEW WOMEN, FAME AND AUTONOMY IN A CULTURE THAT SO OFTEN DENIES THEM REAL CONTROL

By Kara Buffrey | @karabuffrey11 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | Press Invite

Sitting in Soho Theatre for Megan Prescott’s Really Good Exposure, I wasn’t prepared for just how raw, unflinching and honest it would be. What begins as the story of Molly Thomas, a young woman pushed into the spotlight at an early age, quickly becomes something much bigger: an exploration of fame, power, sexuality and survival told with humour, grit and a fierce sense of truth.

Prescott uses Molly as a lens to revisit her own past in the entertainment industry, but what’s so compelling is how universal the story feels. We see Molly as a child, cajoled into pageants and auditions, encouraged by parents who want the glamour but miss the toll it takes on their daughter. Those early experiences are painted with an uneasy mix of innocence and exploitation, and it sets the stage for everything that follows.

As Molly grows older, the pressures of being in the public eye intensify. Casting rooms and film sets are shown not as glamorous playgrounds, but as spaces where consent is blurred and expectation weighs heavily. Prescott doesn’t shy away from showing how the industry demands more while giving less, stripping away agency in the name of success. It’s painful to watch at times, but that discomfort is the point: she is forcing the audience to confront the darker side of fame.

What keeps the performance from being bleak is Prescott’s sharpness as both a writer and a performer. Her delivery is witty, self-aware and full of bite, and even in its heaviest moments the show has flashes of humour that cut through. There’s also a real sense of courage in how she stages the story. Much of the show is performed in a sparkly bikini, which at first feels deliberately jarring, echoing the forced exposure of Molly’s childhood. But as the piece develops, that same costume takes on new meaning: it becomes a statement of ownership, a way of saying she is finally choosing to step into the spotlight on her own terms.

One of the most striking threads of the show is how it reframes the choices Molly makes as an adult. Where society might rush to label her as a victim or condemn her for embracing work in sex or adult industries, Prescott presents these decisions as complex, personal and, above all, hers to own. Rather than portraying these shifts as a fall from grace, the show insists on recognising them as a form of independence, even empowerment.

The staging is simple but effective, with lighting and projections that give texture to the narrative without distracting from Prescott’s presence. If anything, the only slight drawback is that some transitions feel a little abrupt, as though the story is racing to get to the next revelation. But the emotional core is so strong that those rough edges don’t undermine the experience.

By the end, I left the theatre feeling moved, unsettled and impressed in equal measure. Really Good Exposure is not a comfortable watch, but it is a necessary one. It’s a piece of theatre that doesn’t just tell a story, it demands reflection on how we view women, fame and autonomy in a culture that so often denies them real control. Prescott has created something bold, uncompromising and deeply personal, and it deserves to be seen.

Really Good Exposure is running at Soho Theatre until Saturday 13 September.

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Photo Credit: Damian Robertson