F E S T I VA L C O M E DY | Reviews
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CIARAN DOWD: PADRE RODOLFO Fine follow-up from last year’s Best Newcomer victor ●●●●●
That lover, fighter and ‘writer of dogshit poems’ is back after his puppet master, Ciarán Dowd, sauntered out of town with last year’s Edinburgh Comedy Award Best Newcomer gong for a maiden voyage aboard the good ship Rodolfo. Now, the Don is back with that ropey Spanish accent (enabled with just the right amount of subtly Irish inflection) and a plot that you can really just forget in favour of rank silliness and swashbuckling chaos that ensues over 60 minutes. The flimsy narrative which ultimately gets in the way of juicy
delivery and icky puns now has Rodolfo in the priesthood and battling the devil at every turn as he attempts to sate his ardour in the form of a comely nun. The devil himself makes an appearance, initially audibly (as the Padre and Lucifer attempt to end a conversation like two lovers looking for the other one to hang up first) but then made flesh. And later he careers into our orbit via some less than subtle references to The Exorcist. A more palatable character is the owl who tries to keep Rodolfo updated on happenings down the Vatican, but the Pope’s message can’t be delivered due to the owl’s inability to remember crucial details. As the daft plot spirals to a conclusion, there’s a genuine jump scare and a deadly fight to the finish with Beelzebub himself. But for all the mugging and special effects (a wheel of cheese brings untold doom to proceedings), the show lives or dies on Padre Rodolfo. And having earned the confidence that a big award can bring, Dowd has followed up his Don debut with another eyeliner- heavy portrayal of this Lothario rubbing up against evil incarnate. When it comes to convincing character comedy strung across one full hour, as George Michael insists in song prior to the show, you gotta have faith. (Brian Donaldson) n Pleasance Courtyard, until 25 Aug (not 14), 9.45pm, £9–£12 (£8–£11).
ASHLEY STORRIE: HYSTERICAL Colourful and controversial routines ●●●●●
BASIL BRUSH: UNLEASHED An amble down memory lane for fans of the fantastic fox ●●●●● ORLANDO BAXTER: FINDING MARIAH Purging hour about dysfunctional parenting ●●●●●
Bantering with the crowd as they stream through the door, Ashley Storrie is quick to build a rapport, getting the laughs flowing before the show even begins. Hysterical is a one-hour set which reflects on depression, autism, dating and Beauty and the Beast, all of which has the audience hanging on Storrie’s every word.
The comic isn’t afraid to talk about the difficulties she’s had in the past, telling the gathering how she spent the ten years before becoming a stand-up doing absolutely nothing. Storrie makes light work of it, though, cracking jokes left, right and centre, peppered throughout with witty side-notes as she gets distracted by some of the intrusive thoughts that make up a significant portion of the set.
A warm and engaging storyteller, Storrie doesn’t shy away from controversial topics (or a bit of colourful language), and her frankness is truly refreshing; never more so than when she tells the story behind her decision to become a stand-up. Storrie is celebrating her fifth or sixth year (she can’t quite remember) at the Fringe, but with a performance like this, there’s no doubt that she’ll be a sell-out act for many more to come. (Lauren McKay) n Laughing Horse @ The Counting House, until 25 Aug, 5.30pm, donations at the venue.
48 THE LIST FESTIVAL 14–26 Aug 2019
Neither fish nor fowl, foxy Basil Brush is clearly too established to be considered for any of the Edinburgh Comedy Awards but hasn’t enough Fringe experience under his belt to be dubbed a veteran. All this despite being in the biz since 1963. He has clearly learned a thing or two down the years, and succeeds almost effortlessly in creating a cheeky rapport with guests, sidekicks and audience members. It’s hard to take too much offence when you’re being insulted by a bit of soft material (spoiler alert: Baz isn’t a real fox). Tonight, stand-up Suzi Ruffell joins ‘Mr Martin’ (Martin Cabble-Reid) for a bit of awkward sofa banter while Hugh Bonneville joins us on a video link to gamely play along with the constructed ruse. The ‘news review’ section engenders few laughs while there’s saucy wordplay around Arthur’s Seat and upkilting. The highlight is some horseplay with contestants when Basil is forced to deny that someone is operating him from underneath his desk. A nostalgic trip for many (there’s a plethora of silver foxes in this crowd), this adds a little bit of diverting Fringe fun for those who don’t like to be especially challenged. (Brian Donaldson) n Underbelly Bristo Square, until 25 Aug, 6.45pm, £12–£13 (£11–£12).
Of all the bad life choices made by Orlando Baxter’s mum, surely the worst was her decision to shack up with Willy in the first place. Willy, as we discover in this wonderfully engaging monologue, is Baxter’s biological father and prime candidate for America’s ‘most dysfunctional dad’. Having planted his seed, he disappears for ten years until making a sudden, brief reappearance to reconnect with his son. It sounds like Willy’s finally doing the right thing, or would be had he not proceeded to screw up his re-entry big time.
In Baxter’s telling, decades after the event, it becomes a painfully funny story, which tells you something about the therapeutic power of comedy. Come the end, the audience is well and truly hooked by this charismatic performer. As the story unfolds we hear of possible sisters, though none resembling Mariah Carey which in Willy’s deluded mind means that they can’t possibly be his progeny. Before long he’s claiming the credit for his kids’ success, and by the end, you’re left wondering if that decision by Baxter’s mum wasn’t so awful after all. The world and this year’s Fringe would be much poorer without Orlando Baxter and this story. (Tom Bruce-Gardyne) n The Stand 2, until 24 Aug, 5.05pm, £10 (£9).