FESTIVAL COMEDY | Reviews at a Glance
Ian Smith ●●●●● This affable Yorkshireman proves he can get tough when the going gets rough, seizing the show from what he describes as ‘almost certain disaster’ in the face of technical gremlins. Improvisation brings out some high-calibre lines: he muses on everything from life’s bigger questions to topics such as when characters in soaps don’t recognise that an actor has been replaced by someone totally different, as well as his own ventures into acting. (Emma Newlands) Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, until 24 Aug (not 12), 6pm, £7.50–£10 (£6.50–£9).Igor Meerson ●●●●● Officially approved by Dylan Moran, Meerson is the first Russian stand-up on the Fringe. He’s incredibly sweet and, considering live comedy is a new phenomenon in Russia, it’s understandable that much of his material is old-fashioned. The first half centres on comparing the direct, abrupt Russian vocabulary with the Brits’ love of politeness. It’s all mildly amusing but draws on several tired old stereotypes that have already been flogged to death many times before. (Henry Northmore) Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, until 25 Aug (not 11), 8.30pm, £8–£10.50 (£7–£9.50). The Jest ●●●●● This year The Jest team have been pruned from the previous nine- piece down to five. There isn’t a weak link in the chain but special mention goes to Luke Theobald and his uncanny ability to perform the most unlikely impressions of celebrities including Maggie Smith and a truly unhinged Jim Broadbent. (Marissa Burgess) Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, until 24 Aug (not 12), 11pm, £7.50–£10 (£6.50–£9). Jim Campbell ●●●●● The last thing comedy needs is yet another bland, bespectacled stand-up performing barely adequate material about their tedious first-world problems. Jim Campbell is obviously a very nice man. That’s not in itself a problem: you don’t have to be a bitter, bile-caked misanthrope to make it in comedy (but it helps). The problem is that Campbell has nothing new or surprising to say. (Paul Whitelaw) Underbelly, Bristo Square, 0844 545 8252, until 25 Aug (not 12), 2:50pm, £9–£10 (£8–£9). Joel Dommett ●●●●● A self-styled optimist who claims never to get sad or angry, Dommett has the skills to keep the show going in spite of interruptions. The premise is a self-mocking look at the emo band he formed as a teenager and, as his 30th birthday looms, a plan to put the band back together. The shape of the show is anecdotal and confessional but the tone stays light. (Suzanne Black) Laughing Horse @ The Counting House, 667 7533, until 24 Aug, 9pm, free. John Hastings ●●●●● Brawny yet a self-confessed Star Wars and Tolkien expert, UK-based Canadian Hastings is not a man who shies away from contradictions. The emerging differences between the two cultures provides a sizeable chunk of his material, and when he gets a target in his crosshairs, he transforms, Incredible Hulk-style, from being pale to puce and loud enough to be heard in his Canadian homeland. (Emma Newlands) Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, until 24 Aug, 9.45pm, £8–£9.50 (£7–£8.50). Juliette Burton ●●●●● For most of her life, Burton has struggled with food and body issues which led to several extended, and sometimes enforced, hospitalisations. That might make Look at Me sound like a total downer but her positive outlook is infectious. Utilising confessionals, a big screen and video footage, she examines the questions surrounding perceptions of the human form, secretly filming herself dressed as a man, an old woman and more to gauge the public’s reaction to various body types. (Henry Northmore) Gilded Balloon Teviot, 622 6552, until 25 Aug (not 13), 2.45pm, £8–£10 (£7–£9). Katie Mulgrew ●●●●● What’s a girl to do when she grows up with idealised 56 THE LIST FESTIVAL 7–14 Aug 2014
Lucie Pohl in Hi, Hitler
cartoon princesses meeting their prince charmings, and then reality slowly starts to kick in? Mulgrew tackles the transition in a highly amiable, enthusiastic and self-deprecating style in what she calls her ‘Lancashire dulcet tones’. The show has some genuinely touching moments as well as some choice gags hitting deserving targets close to the knuckle. (Emma Newlands) Gilded Balloon Teviot, 622 6552, until 24 Aug (not 12), 8pm, £8.50–£10 (£7–£9). Kraken ●●●●● Who needs actions when you’ve got words? Or in the case of Kraken, who needs words when you’ve got actions, specifically the transfixing mime of New Zealand’s Trygve Wakenshaw? Also the creator of cult hit Squidboy, he has the audience well and truly in his grasp throughout, without so much as a tangible prop or proper dialogue for company. (Emma Newlands) Underbelly, Cowgate, 0844 545 8252, until 24 Aug (not 11), 8.40pm, £11–£12 (£10–£11). Larry Dean ●●●●● Dean is chatty, personable and lovely to be around – he works the crowd well, and his anecdotes about coming out to his family and friends have an amiable fondness about them – but there are only about three jokes that raise laughs rather than titters. It’s an amiable hour that goes nowhere and is ultimately hard to recommend. (Niki Boyle) Beehive Inn, 07768 048165, until 24 Aug, 9.10pm, £9–£12. Laurence Clark ●●●●● Clark has a swathe of regrets he’s been harbouring and he’s decided that now is the time to offload them onto a crowd. The piece centres around a moment of cringeworthiness at a Richard Herring gig which leads on to a series of other incidents in which Clark is at the end of some ignorant behaviour. He doesn’t always manage to hold the moral high ground though, and these clashes are where his show’s humour lies. (Brian Donaldson) Assembly George Square, 623 3030, until 24 Aug (not 12), 7.20pm, £9–£10 (£8–£9). Lloyd Griffith ●●●●● It’s not often that a comedian doubles up as a choir singer. Even more incongruously, Griffith is big and beardy, yet has a beautiful falsetto voice. Taking his title, Voice of an Angel, Body of a Trucker, from a rather perceptive quote by a reviewer, Griffith takes the amusing contradiction of sight and sound and runs with it. (Marissa Burgess) Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, until 24 Aug (not 11), 7.15pm, £7.50–£10.50 (£6.50–£9.50). Nathaniel Metcalfe ●●●●● Like a magician displaying his empty sleeves, Metcalfe forecasts exactly what he’s going to do: which jokes he’ll tell; how successful they will be; what he should have said instead. With his material meandering though his time working at a comic book shop, his degree and a lifetime of consuming media, this tactic works well. (Suzanne Black) Cabaret Voltaire, 226 0000, until 23 Aug (not 13), 2.35pm, free. Rachel Fairburn ●●●●● This barely attended gig in a tiny room was Fairburn’s debut Fringe performance. No wonder the diminutive Mancunian seemed fazed at times. It may seem unfair to judge her under these circumstances, but even with the best will in the world her material was weak. An observational comic with a pessimistic outlook, Fairburn’s likeability just about carries her along. (Paul Whitelaw) Laughing Horse @ Jekyll and Hyde, 225 2022, until 24 Aug (not 19), 12.45pm, free. Ria Lina ●●●●● For a wide variety of reasons, Lina decided to home-school her three kids, and this is the story of how and why she took that major task on board. There are a few musical numbers including one about the dark side of nursery rhymes to keep the show rolling while she amusingly displays a burning resentment towards Michael Gove. But that’s all neatly balanced with
equal disdain for the two Eds, Balls and Miliband. (Brian Donaldson) Gilded Balloon Teviot, 622 6552, until 25 Aug, 3pm, £8–£9 (£7–£8). Robert White ●●●●● White strikes an odd note from the off as he enters the stage dressed in a bin bag and playing the trumpet. Once the show proper starts, it is still difficult to get a handle on what he’s trying to pull off. A large amount of his material is made up of groan-worthy puns, some of which land, but their abundance reaps diminishing returns. (Suzanne Black) The Hive, 226 0000, until 24 Aug (not 11, 18), 5.30pm, free. Robin And Partridge ●●●●● This is a double-act show that teeters on the edge of awfulness on far too many occasions for comfort, but by the skin of their teeth, this overly silly twosome manage to earn some kudos largely on the basis of thick skin and enthusiasm, as Robin strives manfully to stay alive at the end of the show. Best not ask. (Brian Donaldson) Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, until 24 Aug (not 18), 2.15pm, £7–£9 (£6–£8). Shazia Mirza ●●●●● Head count and pithy one-liner about the proximity of audience-to-stage exhausted, this smart columnist begins. Mirza had to buy a bulletproof vest for a show she was doing in Pakistan. Sure, it’s a crazy story for down the pub, but truth be told, war torn countries and the dangers lurking there don’t offer a helluva lot of laughs at an arts festival either. (Anna Millar) Assembly Rooms, 0844 693 3008, until 24 Aug (not 11), 5.15pm, £10 (£9). Simon Feilder ●●●●● Under the guise of listing all the ways he fails to measure up as a man, Feilder turns less into more by showing that the talent he does have is there in spades. Relying heavily on interactions with pre-recorded skits and verbal gags delivered by a projector, he skips from topic to topic, creating a false picture of ineptitude. (Suzanne Black) Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, until 25 Aug (not 11), 8.30pm, £7–£9 (£6.50–£8). Stuart Black ●●●●● Black has reached many crossroads in his 42 years, ones that have led to five years on the dole, a psychiatric hospital stay after not taking a bath for several months and living in a van as it was easier to travel to comedy gigs that way. Still, it makes for good source material. Poetic and eloquent, he’s a joy to listen to. (Marissa Burgess) Laughing Horse @ The Counting House, 667 7533, until 24 Aug (not 11, 18), 10pm, free. Tommy Rowson ●●●●● Amiable enough, Welsh comic Rowson’s deadpan delivery would need some absolute killer material to offset it, but unfortunately, it’s not here in this tale of drinking and star-crossed love. For Down and Out in Powys and London, only the performer ends the show especially floored. (Brian Donaldson) Underbelly, Bristo Square, 0844 545 8252, until 24 Aug (not 12), 6.45pm, £8.50–£10 (£7–£9). Tom Price ●●●●● Price is a twat and he wants you to know that. Sure, he’s got a ‘nice’ face, but, he is at pains to stress, that doesn’t make him a good person. He’s been a dick since childhood when, as a result of his selfishness, one of his friends ended up cleaning a Scalextric track with a condom his mum gave him. Involving a fair whack of the audience brings the show out of its shell. (Kirstyn Smith) Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, until 24 Aug, 9.30pm, £7.50–£10 (£6.50–£9). WOMANz ●●●●● Tessa Waters’ enthusiastic character grins her way delightedly through a series of pseudo sexy dances in an awkward show that celebrates abandoning your inhibitions. After a self-conscious start, her ‘screw it, let’s dance’ attitude does start to work its magic on the audience and her closing statements of living in the moment end a disjointed show on a positive if not a hilarious note. (Rowena McIntosh) Underbelly, Cowgate, 0844 545 8252, until 24 Aug (not 12), 10pm, £9–£10 (£8–£9).