ITS 'Bouncers' hurled a haymaker at the county's

theatrical conventions and now Four Play has found a feminine touch that's just as hard hitting.

'Shakers', currently showing at The Courtyard's studio, extends the 'night out' metaphor as an exploration of social perspectives. This time the core characters are four young waitresses who, in just over an hour, play around 40 parts. Both works were nurtured in the Hull Truck stable that favours observational approaches to text. Fitting then that director James McKenzie should first rehearse his cast, average age 18, in a city pub.

The players - Ellie While, Asha Burrell, Daisy Gell and Becky Williams - were there, he says, to 'pick up pointers' on roles requiring interpretation. He took a similar tack with 'Bouncers', and the end result was widely touted among The Courtyard's top shows of 2000.

The same crowd-pleasing comic cocktail gives 'Shakers' its kick. A kind of 'in the flesh' fun at the expense of stereotype, tapping in to what women can find funny about themselves. But behind the laugh-lines lie darker perceptions of the female experience. James admits to finding this

element daunting as a director.

Keeping it 'real' relied, to some extent, on the cast adding their own insights to character background, and allowing opportunities for improvisation. That trust was returned in their response to a rehearsal period that proved particularly demanding physically and mentally.

Four performers, playing 40 parts across the age range, at a pace that keeps running time within an hour and 10 minutes - the interval break they get might seem a small mercy. Work rate, though, is a hallmark of Four Play, a fledgling company that's taken just a year to establish itself as willing, and able, to tackle challenging work.

So what next - after 'Bouncers', 'Equus', 'Of Mice and Men', and 'Shakers'? James is already pitching an ambitious production of Patrick Marber's hit 'Closer'. If that doesn't come off he's 'looking for ideas'.

And unlikely to be doing so for long.

-Shakers ends its run at The Courtyard's Studio Theatre this Saturday (December1). Call the box office on 01432 359252.

Bill Tanner