Shows like For Dolores is what The Traverse was created for. And the universal standing ovation that greeted the climax of this truly great theatre experience proves as much. To detail the context of this stunningly beautiful two-hander would be to spoil the story of Mo and Réaltín.

The play takes the form of a therapy session. Mo and Réaltín are about to expose some pretty grim truths about the highly complex relationship that has gotten them through their 20s.

The show is set in a  therapist office’s waiting room on a simple platform with two chairs set upon a pile of empty alcohol bottles and books.  The substance of their respective lives . These two girls have gone through the mill, each to their own, but closely linked. Mo is the bullish queer partner in a Scottish/Irish friendship with nervous straight Réaltín (‘stupid name’, means tiny shining star).  They meet during Freshers’ Week at Edinburgh University in a lift that breaks down. A bit like their relationship.

Dolores, the unseen title character, is a one-year-old breast feeding monster. Deko, Mo’s brother, is a significant other and Finland, Réaltín’s hunky, rich and entitled Finnish ex-fiance is in HMP Saughton. These five characters are inextricably linked and bonded by love, sex and desire but that’s all you’re getting here.

Fishamble has created a monumental show that’s embraced, in perfection, by the two leads: little ands large, confident and scared, functionally alcoholic and functionally anxious, Lara McDonnell and Catriona Faint.  Both, equal and opposite, command the Traverse Two Stage with a ferocity of belief that is palpably electrifying.  They love one another, but they might kill one another.  The fact that every human heart in this room is rooting for each of them is testament to the quality and, initially, the humour of writing (Vag Slime doesn’t make the cut in many scripts I’ve read).

The direction, performances and slightness of technical touch are all terrific. And the emotional payback towards the end of this superb production is like a thunderbolt. Every mark has been hit, every punch landed by the time the truth behind Mo and Réaltín’s complex relationship finally reveals itself. It’s absolutely gripping stuff.

Dolores O’Riordan would have loved this. Dolores Ibárruri, perhaps even more.

For Dolores is at Traverse 2 at Traverse Theatre until Sun 30 Aug 2026