File the name Ceejay Singh under ‘local young playwright to watch’: it’s always a joy to see the creativity of grassroots theatre and A Girl does not disappoint. Set in middle-class India, the play gives a succinct account of the social mores and traditional pressures still placed upon young women in modern Indian society. A young married couple illegally finds out before term that their expected baby is a girl. Elation quickly turns to disappointment, then threats, as the influence of the man’s mother weighs heavily on their relationship, with tragic results.

Sure, a few scene changes could use finessing, and at a critical point it takes a moment to realise we’re watching a dream sequence but, considering budget constraints, everything works out okay. In the space of an hour, the audience is sympathetically, yet honestly, introduced to a good overview of both the wonderful and dreadful aspects of Indian culture as seen by Singh, and the unexpected outcomes of such familial expectations. In this case, more men are looking for wives than there are women available, yet the abhorrent practise of female foeticide still exists.