Edinburgh Fringe 2025
ROTUS: Receptionist of the United States
Leigh Douglas / Suzanna Rosenthal Productions
Venue: Gilded Balloon
Festival: Edinburgh Fringe
Low Down
ROTUS takes us on a hilarious and exciting rollercoaster through the craziest day of Chastity Quirke’s career. What will she do to serve her president?
Review
Despite what some see as an obvious oxymoron, women represent some of the most fearsome figures in conservative politics. Margaret Thatcher transformed Britain’s social and economic policy while Kellyanne Conway managed Trump’s 2016 bid, making her the first woman in history to run a successful presidential campaign. ROTUS: Receptionist of the United States plays on our preconceived ideas of women in Republican politics through a satirical, but almost too real, story.
Chastity Quirke, played by the sensational Leigh Douglas, is a sorority president turned white house staffer in the (somewhat) fictional Drumpf White House. Feeling like an extended SNL sketch, the play centers around a specifically eventful day at the office. Douglas interrupts the story every so often to provide us with context. We meet the who’s who of ROTUS’s Washington, with the audience left to figure out their real-world counterparts.
Although a one-woman show, it is not a one-woman story. The characters were too many to count, and Douglas played them all. No voice-overs, no puppets, just Douglas dashing about the stage adjusting her voice and physical presence. At first, it felt a bit strange, but the speed and ease with which Douglas transforms herself brought me right into the story. There was never a question of who she was (and if there was, the script made sure we were kept on track).
Perhaps giving her a lot in common with Chastity, Douglas brings a commanding presence to the Gilded Balloon space. She watches the audience, responding to their reactions. She never stumbled if a joke wasn’t received or if laughter came at an unexpected moment. This represents a triumph of storytelling. In a gigantic venue, it may be easy to draw that separation, but in a university meeting-room-turned-theatre, it becomes much, much harder.
This is the genius of the piece. Chastity guards the Oval Office, but welcomes everyone to her desk. The audience was welcomed into the story, invited to take part in the administration, but never allowed behind the door.
We live in an era of politics where satire and reality are blurring. In years past, this show would have provided a joyous giggle and nothing more. Now, we all find ourselves questioning if we’re watching a documentary. Perhaps satire has evolved – perhaps now, it’s a warning.
