Beach Body Ready

If you came here for clichés and feel-good anecdotes, you came to wrong place.

Beach Body Ready

‘Beach Body Ready’ reflects the hardships of being a woman with body issues. The candid story telling from Roaring Girls Jess, Rachael and Sarah, resonates with any woman who has a body that she doesn’t love, and any woman who has a body society says you shouldn’t love. 

From the title, I was expecting a stew of worn clichés like “beauty comes from within”, but The Roaring Girls delivered no such corny, off the rack message. They gave a personal, honest, real account of what it is like to be a body conscious woman in today’s society. 

From every chub rub, to small aeroplane seatbelt to putting celery with literally anything to try and make it taste, well, like literally anything, The Roaring Girls regaled the audience in tales every size woman could relate to.  

‘Beach Body Ready’ speaks to the dangers of a culture that would enable a child's parents to tell her that if she didn’t lose weight and find a man before they die, then she would die alone. 

The truth is that a show like this shouldn’t have to be made. People shouldn’t need to be reminded that people of all shapes and sizes exist in society and deserve as much respect as the next size 8. It’s a positive message about being OK with who you are and your right to feel safe, loved and most of all, yourself. 

However, it’s shows like this that fill in the very obvious gaps in people’s knowledge about what it means to be female, what it means to love and respect yourself as a big woman, without being accused of glorifying obesity.

The shows very existence proves just how easy it is to advertise and promote something good, something healthy and organic that has all the makings of inclusivity that mainstream magazines find so hard to grasp. It speaks to our desperate need as a society to unlearn all the awful things we are taught about women who don't look like Kate Moss or Kim Kardashian. 

These women aren't in denial about their body issues, they're just choosing not to give a damn about people’s criticisms. They are choosing to live and play by the rules of their own game, instead of feeling pressured into taking ‘Speed laced diet pills’ from a back alley pharmacist, just so their stomachs don’t ruin your perfect beach day. 

Some people see body positivity as another bandwagon to jump on, but the message The Roaring Girls have for all those who need reminding that choosing to live over the endless struggle for the perfect body is an option, it’s a message that can’t be said enough.


Beach Body Ready is playing at the Pleasance Theatre Above Bar until the 26th August and it is not to be missed. 

Header Image Credit: Tom Arran

Author

Saskia Calliste

Saskia Calliste Voice Team

Saskia is the Deputy Editor of Voice and has worked on campaigns such as International Women’s Day, Black History Month, and Anti-Bullying Week. Outside of Voice, Saskia is a published author (Hairvolution) and has guest featured in various other publications (The Women Writers’ Handbook/ Cosmopolitan/ The Highlight). She has a BA in Creative Writing and Journalism and an MA in Publishing. She is a mentor for Women of the World Global, has guest lectured at the University of Roehampton and has led seminars/panel talks on Race, Equality and Diversity. She was a 2022 Guest Judge for Dave (TV Channel) in search of the 'Joke of the Fringe'. She is 27-years-old, based in London, and loves to cook and explore new places in her spare time.

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