For anyone currently avoiding football after that busy summer, be warned, this show features strong soccer content. Although not as prominently as the ball-kicking poster might suggest.
Our tactically-astute host arguably uses the game as a Trojan horse here, to attract a more varied audience than might normally choose a show about being trans (and The Odyssey also gets a fun mention, sword and sandal fans). The title is a word coined by former German international Thomas Müller to describe his uniquely in-between position on the pitch. The Müller Corner? Actually it loosely translates as ‘Space Invader’, with obvious parallels. A candid section about Allum’s voice – staying silent in ladies’ toilets, spooking predatory men – emphatically offsets any scaremongering from elsewhere.
Raumdeuter is admirably honest, but upbeat, and perhaps the perfect hour to win over trans-sceptical parents/partners. Impressively assured throughout, Allum offers a pleasingly non-binary perspective to trickier questions; trans athletes, for example, rather than proselytising. But then she also puts the boot in, where necessary, notably to one contentious novelist.
Most importantly, it’s consistently funny, and Dee is a joy to spend time with. While some set-pieces could feel forced, they work, and it’s all tied up with a solid World Cup analogy. Well played.
Dee Allum: Raumdeuter, Pleasance Courtyard, until 30 Aug (not 18), 4.10pm