Hannah Maxwell would dearly like a bad review. What could a good review do for her? Briefly boost her ego, yes; shift a few seats, perhaps; make some more noise amid the festival cacophony, for sure. But would it have any value beyond that? She cannot live on acclaim.
Maxwell speaks from experience. Hers was the show that went from flop to phenomenon in 2023 after Phoebe Waller-Bridge saw it as part of an audience of two. But the subsequent fringe success for Nan, Me and Barbara Pravi did not translate to bumper sales year round. Nor did Maxwell particularly want it to.
