FESTIVAL COMEDY | Day Planner
Read these reviews in full at list.co.uk/festival
Abigoliah Schamaun ●●●●● There can’t be many acts with as much sass as Schamaun. Her second Fringe show is all about her favourite subject: ‘me’. The show touches on her upbringing in Ohio, moving to Harlem and is gloriously candid about her rampant promiscuity. Because she’s so good at delivering those provocative statements and confessions there is a tendency to lean on them but she could one day be unstoppable. (Marissa Burgess) Just the Tonic at the Caves, 556 5375, until 25 Aug, 8.55pm, £8–£10. Adam Kay ●●●●● Kay steps away from musical parody group Amateur Transplants for a solo show whose conceit is a lecture about defrauding sick people. Armed with a slide projector and some great props, his attention to detail gets him through some dodgy patches where the gags are in need of resuscitation. (Suzanne Black) Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, until 26 Aug, 5pm, £9–£12 (£7–£10). Al Lubel ●●●●● The first 45 minutes of Lubel’s show are tight, smart and wonderfully funny. The American comedian pulls apart the concept of his own name – a theme he expertly returns to time and again throughout the show – pontificating over just seven letters without getting boring and building to a climax that has shades of Milton Jones on Valium. (Kirstyn Smith) Just the Tonic at The Caves, 556 5375, until 25 Aug, 10.30pm, £7–£10. Alan Committie ●●●●● If you haven’t consumed comedy of any kind for the last 20-plus years, Committie’s material about airport security, hotel room showers and romantic comedies might appear fresh. If you are at all familiar with stand-up comedy, this kind of hackneyed material just won’t fly. The full-on audience ‘participation’ was tedious in such a small venue, but would probably go over a lot better with a rowdy crowd. (Suzanne Black) Assembly Roxy, 623 3030, until 26 Aug, 9.20pm, £11–£12 (£10–£11). Alex Horne ●●●●● Can we just put this down to a blip in a largely flawless Fringe career from Horne? Best known for high-concept shows about Latin, words or birdwatching, this analysis of lies is dominated by an exercise in editing by cutting and pasting bits from the audio-biogs of Michael Caine, Cherie Blair and Andre Agassi. Truth is this was an abject failure. (Brian Donaldson) Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, until 25 Aug, 8.30pm, £9.50–£10.50 (£8.50– £9.50). Alistair Green Is Jack Spencer ●●●●● You may know him as the face of Big Brother’s Little Brother’s Labrador’s Cousin but Jack Spencer’s life has by stained by his terrible sex addiction. It’s a nicely observed character and despite the low turn-out, Green is totally committed to the role. Any similarities to Russell Brand are purely coincidental, but don’t whatever you do ask him about Amy Winehouse. (Marissa Burgess) Just the Tonic at The Tron, 556 5375, until 25 Aug, 9pm, £7.50–£8.50. AntiGraham ●●●●● Another sprightly sketch show from the Graham group with their skits built around the main narrative of a young lad seemingly abandoned by his mother and left to fend for himself as badgers threaten to take over the world. The quartet don’t believe in hanging about and each standalone sketch gets in and out before you know it. (Brian Donaldson) Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, until 25 Aug, 4.35pm, £9–£12 (£8–£11). Arthur Smith ●●●●● Although he pretends to dismiss certain comedy conventions for this tribute to Leonard Cohen, Smith utilises decades of comedy nous to concoct a tightly-scripted delight of a show containing many an exquisite turn of phrase. Embracing misery and even taking pleasure in it, Smith ploughs
50 THE LIST FESTIVAL 15–22 Aug 2013
Felicity Ward
a dark comedic furrow that is all the more potent for its honesty. And there’s the odd bit of full-frontal nudity. (Suzanne Black) Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, until 18 Aug, 2.30pm, £10–£12 (£9–£11). BEASTS ●●●●● After a solid debut last year, the trio return with another set of fine sketches featuring the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles saying farewell to one of their number and some fine sight gags. The highlight is the Big Bad Wolf being taken down a peg or two by a sarcastic pig. (Brian Donaldson) Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, until 26 Aug, 4.45pm, £7.50–£10 (£6.50–£9). Brett Goldstein ●●●●● Contains Scenes of an Adult Nature alludes to both this show’s theme (pornography) and its content (monologues about shagging). Goldstein’s thesis is that internet porn is bad, not just because it degrades women and provides youngsters with an unhealthy introduction to sex, but also because abusing himself while using it has had a negative effect on him. The material and delivery is decent enough as he leads us through an eventful life. (Miles Fielder) Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, until 26 Aug, 9.30pm, £9.50–£11 (£8.50–£10). Colin Geddis ●●●●● Having secured enough hits with his online to be considered something of an internet sensation, the Northern Irish comic has come to the Fringe to mix his video work with some old-school stand-up. The material is pretty filthy (Geddis makes himself dry heave with a line about making popsicles out of used sanitary towels), but the attempts to shock laughs out of the audience are carried by good jokes, sound delivery and a surprisingly light touch. (Miles Fielder) Underbelly, Bristo Square, 0844 545 8252, until 25 Aug, 9.25pm, £9–£10 (£8–£9). Dan Cook ●●●●● Given his auburn waves, Cook is brave donning an orange jumpsuit for his community service after being convicted of throwing a quiche at a dog. The script may not be the sharpest but Cook possesses a quality that simply makes him funny and he has a curious mixture of posturing confidence and sheer silliness. There are exquisite comedic nuances in his M-People ‘dance’ and skits featuring horses that are either riddled with cancer or severely claustrophobic. (Marissa Burgess) Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, until 26 Aug, 4.30pm, £8.50–£10 (£7–£8.50). Dave Callan ●●●●● A likeable, dandyish figure in crushed velvet clothes (and with some killer dance moves), Callan’s enthusiasm for the study of comedy is infectious, and the first ten minutes or so get by on his endearingly fumbled punchlines. As time goes on though, he wanders from his core subject: too much of the hour is dedicated to facile contrasts between 2013 and 1913 and there’s even a bizarre, unprovoked rant about the evils of fad dieting. (Niki Boyle) Gilded Balloon Teviot, 622 6552, until 26 Aug, 11.59pm, £10 (£8). David Mills ●●●●● Mills seems to hate everything and a dank cave is the perfect setting for this irascible troll. The American ex-pat who lives in London unleashes a gutful of ire about beards, tattoos, Scottish independence and marriage but gets away with it by knowing when to hold back and when to let rip. He maintains tight control over the pace and tone and just when his cattiness threatens to sour the joke, he throws in a little vulnerability. (Suzanne Black) Heroes @ The Hive, 226 0000, until 25 Aug, 5.30pm, Pay What You Want or £5 in advance. Dressing Down ●●●●● If you’re choosing one show to represent the breakneck-paced sketch genre in your viewing schedule this festival, make it this one. Studenty, smart and artfully ramshackle, it’s everything you’d expect from three young gentlemen with a Cambridge Footlights pedigree. The premise is that a malfunctioning magic wardrobe keeps spitting Harry, Alex and Ben out in different, often equally malfunctioning costumes and it’s all inventive, intelligent and breathlessly fast. (Laura Ennor) Gilded Balloon Teviot, 622 6552, until 26 Aug, 3pm, £9–£10 (£8–£9).
Felicity Ward ●●●●● Close to the top of this show there’s the most joyous introduction for a slightly tipsy medical receptionist you’re likely to witness. Ward fizzes with an energy that’s infectious and it’s easy to see why there’s such a buzz about her. Her hour is pretty much straight stand-up with topics ranging from the more unusual junkie impersonations, splitting the crowd into their respective generations and pondering on what wisdom she can pass on to her new niece. (Marissa Burgess) Underbelly, Bristo Square, 0844 545 8252, until 26 Aug, 10pm, £11–£13 (£10–£12). Festival of the Spoken Nerd ●●●●● There are no pretensions about the unashamed geekiness of Matt Parker, Helen Arney and Steve Mould as they seek to produce the nerd show to end all nerd shows. FotSN is a little bit comedy and a little bit high school science class, and the show is loveably shambolic. (Kirstyn Smith) Assembly George Square, 623 3030, until 25 Aug, 6.10pm, £10–£12 (£8.50–£10.50). Fraser Millward ●●●●● With a touch of the Adam Riches, Millward unleashes characters such as a Dr Strangelove- esque medic who may or may not dabble in euthanasia, a slimy host of the worst game show ever and, most memorably, the bus driver who, as the revellers out on Bristo Square find out, is loudly perplexed to discover that one of his luxury coaches has gone missing. A ballsy character affair. (Brian Donaldson) Just the Tonic at Bristo Square, 556 5375, until 25 Aug, 4.10pm, £7.50–£8.50 (£7.50). Geoff Norcott ●●●●● As a Christian and a Tory (albeit one with vague doubts about his twin faiths), Norcott is something of an anomaly on the British stand-up circuit. He lays out his arguments with verve and wit, and shows why this ‘chavvy Michael Palin’ is so adept at holding a crowd, even one that might be at odds with his belief systems. (Brian Donaldson) Just the Tonic at The Tron, 556 5375, until 25 Aug, 5pm, £8–£9 (£7–£8). George Ryegold ●●●●● The creation of Toby Williams, Ryegold stalks the stage imparting his logically immersive views on a series of controversial subjects. Vaguely threatening at all times, Ryegold covers topics including how to best improve the lives of starving children in Africa and a quick exploration of shokushu goukan (that’s Japanese tentacle porn to you and me). His after- dinner speaker stage presence is cool and confident. (Kirstyn Smith) Underbelly, Bristo Square, 0844 545 8252, until 26 Aug, 9.40pm, £8.50–£9.50 (£7–£8). Graham Clark ●●●●● Clark’s ragged, overlong facial hair (Wizzard/Santa Claus links must now plague him) is the first port of call for his comedy. He explains that he now fits in with the homeless crowd and was ‘tired of being employed’ so grew his goatee. This instantly gets us on board, as Clark’s desert-dry delivery makes trivial comments on food, fitness and family hilarious. (Andrew Latimer) Assembly Roxy, 623 3030, until 26 Aug, 7pm, £9–£10 (£8–£9). Gráinne Maguire ●●●●● Maguire has a bubbly enthusiasm which drives her on through this One Hour All Night Election Special. She is obsessed with general elections and holds a makeshift vote among the crowd, which seems to simply be a long-winded excuse for a pay-off gag in which she recalls a fashion disaster from her youth. (Brian Donaldson) Underbelly, Bristo Square, 0844 545 8252, until 25 Aug (not 16), 2.45pm, £8.50–£10 (£7–£9). Hannah Gadsby ●●●●● A show that manages to be both cheek-achingly funny and genuinely touching is a rare thing, so make the most of this treat from Tasmanian comic Gadsby. Her narrative, which starts and finishes with an unfortunate night-time surprise, is so beautifully constructed that you don’t really notice you’re being taken on ‘a