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Camden Fringe 2026: “Steaks and Lesbians” Review

Review Disclaimer

The views expressed in this review are our own personal opinions based on individual experiences. We do not guarantee the quality, safety, legality, or suitability of any business, service, or destination. Additionally, LGBTQ+ experiences and acceptance can vary widely by location, time, and individual circumstances. Our experience may not reflect yours, and readers are encouraged to conduct their own research before making decisions. Read our full Disclaimer.

[Big thank you to Amity Theatre Company and the Lion & Unicorn Theatre for complimentary tickets in exchange for an honest review.]

“Steaks and Lesbians” Review

Queer camaraderie with two masc lesbian characters leading the way? You have my attention. [And kept it for the entire 60-minute run.] 

In “Steaks and Lesbians”, Kitty June Barker and Amelia C. Owens bring Barker’s script to life with an immersive, unapologetically queer experience. The perfectly timed laughs are enriched by points of anger, sadness, and longing, leaving the audience to feel as if we’re saying goodbye to our close, personal friends at the end of an eventful (average) East London Tuesday night. 

The story follows two lesbian best friends and housemates over a single evening trying to cook the perfect steak dinner while navigating heartbreak, friendship, and intense longing. From the moment you step into the black box theater, the show has begun. Stevie is at the kitchen table on their laptop, practicing conversations and mannerisms, moving about the room to pick up trinkets or repositioning the “Nice Tits” (birds, you perv) tea towel on the chair opposite. 

It’s an incredibly unique and inventive approach that I’m not sure would work in a larger space, but in the small, intimate setting of the 60-seat Lion & Unicorn Theatre, its payoff is immediate. The audience gets to know a main character “behind closed doors”, can see their insecurities, their self-doubts, their vulnerability, and within a 10-minute period, we’re on their side already, whatever there is to come. This emotional buy-in occurs even before the first scene kicks off and carries until the last line. 

image of steaks and lesbian play performance at the lion and unicorn theatre in north london, photo taken by tiffany r ragsdale of two sapphic hags travel dot com

The set and props chosen for “Steaks and Lesbians” play a major role in the believability of the world. A staple in every 20-something’s London flat, the Ikea Kallax takes center stage (front left, actually), but its decor is exactly what you’d expect of a duo of lesbian housemates, featuring the L-Word boxsets, a collection of rocks, and a “Lickalottapus” mug. This incredible attention to detail carries throughout the rest of the set, like with the aforementioned sexual innuendo tea towel, and plays a major role in the props, including the rainbow-themed tongs used for both cooking and a playful cowboy duel. They even pull out a small whiteboard with a diagram outlining grand gestures from all the most famous love stories, which is very visually reminiscent of Alice’s “The Chart”. 

The meticulous queerfication extends to the costume design, which serves as an East London Lesbian starter pack. Pulled right off the streets of Hackney, the jorts-visible-boxer combo are worn by both main characters, but at closer inspection, it’s styled in such a way that reflects their individual personalities. While Stevie, the grounded writer, opts for a subtle black-on-black presentation, River, the aspiring actor, chooses heightened visibility with a red shirt tucked into blue-checked boxers and cut-off jean jorts. Such thoroughness elevates an already great script and serves as another point of personal connection for the audience. 

Along with visible examples, the queerness of “Lesbians and Steaks” is also audible. While I’ll let the Girl in Red discourse slide (mainstream? MAINSTREAM!?!), I can’t overlook just how impactful the music selection is throughout the entire production. The selection flows from one sapphic favorite to another like your best friend’s playlist, serving as both conversation pieces for the leading duo and as scene transitions. As a result, they bypass any awkward scene shifts–a feat in such a quaint setting–and, instead, pull the audience further into the performance with songs much of the crowd likely knows or can at least appreciate with a catchy hook and attention-catching melody. 

image of theatre entrance for camden fringe 2026 at the Lion and Unicorn Theatre in north london, photo by Tiffany R Ragsdale at Two Sapphic Hags Travel dot com

But even with all these exceptional points of detail, nothing touches the quality performances of the two main (and only) actors. Billie Billington and Ryley Pennycard present River and Stevie in such a way that the audience would be forgiven for addressing either by their character names. Billington, in particular, displays such mannerisms that when they have some fun with the food-prep scene, going a bit meta and acknowledging that the audience knows they’re not actually handling a real knife and veg, I forgot it was Billington making that choice and not River. Pennycard, too, deserved the opening night standing ovation after conveying the most heartbreaking longing at the table without delivering a single line; just a desperate stare and watery eyes. 

The only point of struggle throughout the play was at the end, where the scene transitioned from the kitchen to the street. The physical act of moving the set backwards to showcase the change of scenery was visually disruptive enough that the fun music and lowered lighting weren’t enough to distract from it. A different approach, simply relying on lighting (full blackout at the mid to back stage), or a quicker set change may be enough to overcome this issue and keep the audience’s attention where it deserves to be–on the actors. 

As a community, it’s not a stretch to say that we (both lesbians and queer baddies in general) are so starved for representation in entertainment that we’ll ride hard for mediocre deliveries just for a chance to witness our stories on screen or stage. But you’ll be happy to know that that isn’t the case with “Steaks and Lesbians”. It’s an honest, authentic story that’s sure to suck you in and keep your attention from start to finish. Catch it before its run is over!

Thanks again to Amity Theatre Company and the Lion and Unicorn Theatre for complimentary tickets to the opening night performance.

SEE “STEAKS AND LESBIANS” DURING CAMDEN FRINGE 2026 AT THE LION & UNICORN THEATRE IN NORTH LONDON FROM AUGUST 16TH TO 20TH.

east london lesbian starter pack collage for fun featuring jorts and eyelet belt loops, property of Two Sapphic Hags Travel dot com

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