Doctor Rosy Carrick brought her long-anticipated one-woman show to Nottingham’s Lakeside Arts on Thursday 6 February, in which she explores hidden sexual desire and female sexual empowerment through conversations between mother and daughter.
Rosy Carrick – newly single at age forty and on the hunt for sexual fulfilment – effortlessly blurs the lines between host and protagonist. The audience is left never quite sure where reality ends and performance begins, making her raw vulnerability all the more powerful. Honest, provocative and outrageously funny, Rosy owned every moment she was on stage.
In this one-woman show, she deftly portrays a handful of other characters, from her daughter Olive (‘played’ by a string of photos of a young Courtney Cox) to “Guy” – a faceless, stuffed man who, quite frankly, steals the spotlight. Olive’s ‘coming-of-age’ journey into the complex world of sex and sexuality mirrors Rosy’s own rediscovery, creating a sharp, poignant and unconventional exploration into desire and family dynamics.
Musclebound opened a window for me – and potentially many of the other 2000s-born audience members – into the world of ‘80s Beefcake Classics’, with recurring references to He Man and the Masters of the Universe and Conan The Barbarian. A niche fetish, yes, but it took the audience on a profound journey through the politics of power and pleasure, all wrapped up in the eroticised torture of ‘musclebound’ men.
With a finely crafted narrative and a steady stream of raunchy humour to balance the weightier themes, Musclebound delivered its message with power and clarity.
Rosy urges the audience to take control of their sexual pleasure, to seek empowerment and to never settle for less than makes us feel whole. She explores the idea of a sexual journey as something which is ever-evolving, brilliantly reflected in the heart-warming dynamic between her and her daughter, Olive. This parallel allows Rosy to delve into her identity as a mother, walking the tightrope between supporting her daughter in a time of need and pursuing her own self-fulfilment, creating a morally complex character who was both thought-provoking and deeply engaging.
With a finely crafted narrative and a steady stream of raunchy humour to balance the weightier themes, Musclebound delivered its message with power and clarity. Rosy Carrick proved to be a commanding performer, owning the stage with a microphone, a stuffed man and her own undeniable stage presence – no elaborate set design needed.
That said, Rosy’s use of video projection was a clever and effective touch, setting the tone of the performance with an iconic clip of Arnold Schwarzenegger from Pumping Iron, in which he compares the rush of “the pump” to sexual climax. Recordings of Rosy at Q&A sessions with stars such as Arnold Schwarzenegger and Dolph Lundgren added a further touch of reality to the story, which paved the way for the secondary message of Musclebound. You should never meet your heroes… particularly if said heroes were the object of your sexual awakening.
Musclebound has brought audiences together across the country and will continue touring until 23rd March. Multi award-winning Rosy Carrick is certainly not one to miss.
lakesidearts.org.uk
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