Perfect Show For Rachel Photo Credit: Ikin Yum
By Grace Hatchell, 2nd Act Couriers
Multi award-winning companies Zoo Co and Improbable bring their critically acclaimed production Perfect Show For Rachel to Birmingham Rep from 10 – 12 April 2026 as part of a UK tour.
Following sell-out runs and strong critical reception at the Barbican in 2022 and 2024, the production continues to build momentum as it tours the country.
Created by Zoo Co and produced in collaboration with Improbable, the show places Rachel, a learning-disabled theatre lover, at the centre of the action. With the ability to control the performance live, Rachel shapes each moment as it unfolds, guiding a skilled cast through scenes that range from bar-room chaos to cabaret-style performance.
The production blends physical theatre, live music, comedy and personal storytelling, creating a unique experience that challenges traditional ideas of how theatre is made and who gets to lead it.
Critically praised as “open, relaxed, fun and full of love” and “a disarming labour of love”, the show has already captured audiences and critics alike.
Accessibility sits at the heart of the production. All performances are relaxed as standard, with integrated British Sign Language, creative captioning, and audio-described performances available.
Perfect Show For Rachel runs for approximately 1 hour and 15 minutes with no interval and is recommended for audiences aged 14+.
Perfect Show for Rachel | Birmingham Rep
What’s in Grace’s Satchel? Now THIS is how you make theatre…
Right… I’ll be honest with you… some shows land in my satchel and you go, “lovely, pop that on the pile.”
And then there are shows like this… where you stop, re-read it, and go, hang on… this feels different.
Perfect Show For Rachel isn’t just a show coming to Birmingham Rep… it’s more like being invited into someone’s world and being told, quite politely but firmly, “we’re doing things my way today.”
And I love that.
Rachel — who, by all accounts, sounds like the kind of audience member I’d happily sit next to — is right at the centre of it all. She calls the shots. She decides what happens next. The cast? They’re ready for anything. And I mean anything… bar fights, cabaret, chaos… probably all before you’ve even settled into your seat.
And what really caught my eye — beyond the fart jokes, which I fully support — is the heart behind it.
This isn’t theatre trying to include people as an afterthought. It’s theatre built around them from the very beginning. Properly. Thoughtfully. And, from the sounds of it, joyfully.
I can just imagine the atmosphere already… a bit unpredictable, a bit messy in the best way, and full of those moments where you don’t quite know whether to laugh, cry, or just sit there thinking, “why can’t more shows feel like this?”
And that’s the thing, isn’t it…
Maybe it can.
So if you’re anywhere near Birmingham this April, I’d say this is one to circle, underline, and maybe even tell a friend about (or in my case, several unsuspecting strangers while I’m out on delivery).
Because every now and then, a show comes along that doesn’t just entertain you… it quietly changes how you think theatre could be.
And those are the ones worth opening the satchel for.
— Grace
Perfect Show for Rachel | Birmingham Rep
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