Walking with Molly asks Man or Bear?
A contemporary piece of theatre in the Bitesize Festival, Walking with Molly, written by Katie David, is a striking example of art imitating life.
Recently, conversations around women’s safety reignited with the trial and justice of Gisèle Pelicot, which brought back the viral hypothetical: “man or bear?” The question asks whether women would rather encounter a man or a bear in a secluded forest. Strikingly, many choose the bear, citing its predictability and survival instinct over the unpredictable threat of assault and violence from a man.
This 60-minute piece follows Molly (Philippa Lang), who goes viral on TikTok after a drunken street interview where she argues the correct answer is “man” and claims many women play the victim or are “asking for it.” Waking up to overnight fame, she doubles down on her opinion and launches a TikTok series where she dates strange men and walks home alone without ever feeling unsafe. As her social experiment spirals, the question becomes: at what point does it end?
The show opens with Molly’s viral interview projected across the backdrop, instantly pulling the audience in. You know you are about to meet a character you might dislike, but one who clearly has a lesson to learn, which makes it engaging right from the start. The use of projections and pre-recorded videos of Molly’s dates to update her followers is a clever choice. It feels immersive, almost as if we are following her journey on social media ourselves, and it keeps the pacing tight.
The only element that took me out of it slightly was the use of on-screen text. During one of Molly’s long monologues, the transcript of her TikTok video was projected behind her, and a few skipped lines and swapped words made the moment feel a bit unpolished.
The set design was simple but spot-on. Molly’s bed sat centre stage, surrounded by piles of clothes that told you exactly who she is without a word being spoken. That messy chaos made her sister’s constant tidying and attempts to ground Molly land even harder. Amy Bloomfield, playing Sasha, did a brilliant job as the level-headed, relatable voice of reason, grounding the story throughout.
The lighting design worked beautifully too, shifting the mood between Molly’s bedroom and the dating segments and giving each space its own atmosphere.
The dating scenes themselves were a highlight. Logan Mersh, as Man, switched between different characters seamlessly, giving each man distinct accents, personalities, and quirks. His performance injected just the right amount of lightheartedness to balance the show’s heavier themes.
Philippa Lang, as Molly, showed real range, contrasting the pre-recorded TikTok persona (bubbly, extroverted, larger-than-life) with the more grounded and conflicted version we see on stage. She kept the audience hooked on Molly’s journey, making you wonder how, or if, this morally grey character would learn her lesson.
The ending was not truly satisfying, but perhaps that is the point. Molly must live with the consequences of her choices. Despite realising the truth, she is left with no one except the fans who only know one version of her, the persona who must always be strong, always “never the victim. Never the bear.”
Walking with Molly is uncomfortable, bold, impactful, and painfully relevant, and it lingers in your mind long after you have left the theatre. It is a sharp reminder of the scariness of social media: how easily any voice can reach the world, whether it is right or wrong, and how quickly opinions can spiral beyond control.
There are two more shows for this run, on Friday 1st August 2025 at 3.15pm and 8.45pm. If you can catch it before the run ends, it is worth the discomfort, it is theatre that does not just entertain, it confronts.
★★★★
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Gifted press tickets
