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festival

Finger~iickin’ rude: Louise Rennison

THEATRE REVIEW

SEX TIPS FOR GIRLS

After much experimentation. Louise Rennison has seen it. done it and is now ready to reveal all. Leaving no stone unturned. she ploughs through her wildest fantasies with dirty men. engages in demos with sex toys. group sex workshops (with audience participation) and practical DlY tips.

Rennison climaxes early with a series of five-finger exercises but Dave Seaman gags. and suggestions as to the erotic potential of washing machines though raising a few familiar titters - are a tad tired.

But she keeps the banter up. swapping secrets with girls and flirting with fellas. Sex lends itself to comedy and Rennison‘s romp. though bumpy. is worth the ride. (Claire Prentice)

I Sex Tips For Girls (Fringe) Brighton Theatre Events. The Pleasance (Venue 33) 556 6550. until 3! Aug (not I4. 29) 7.40pm. £7.50/£6.50 (£6/£5).

*‘k‘k

BERT AND WILL IN SORTED FOR TEAS AND BIDS

You've seen straight man/funny tnan here's straight man/gay man. Much of the humour in Bert Tyler-Moore and Will Smith's double-act orbits around differing

Bert and Will: is this the way the future is supposed to feel?

sexual persuasions. though Slur ll’urs. Take That and early evening refreshment also figure. in an uneasy blend of amiable stand-up and silly sketches a formula the boys probably reckon is ittade-for-TV.

Trouble is. both stand- up and sketches require a build-up of momentum. which is constantly interrupted here by changes of lack. and bursts of bogus spontaneity. Some alcohol-induced hilarity on the audience's part would help. but at 6.20pm there‘s little chance of that. Maybe they should‘ve settled for li’s and WIilll. (Andrew Hornet)

I Bert And Will In Sorted For Teas And Bics (Fringe) Bert Tyler-Moore and Will Smith. Pleasance Over The Road (Venue 33A). 556 6550. until 3| Aug. 6.30pm. £7/£6 (Eb/£5).

***

REOUIEM

A showbiz/y musical entertainment about seventeen years of Tory rule sounds as improbable as it does grotesque. This pithin titled compendium of songs aims to do just that. and is aided by the fact that the words are provided by one Simon Rae. whose scathineg observant poems are the conscience of the ll’t't'ltt'm/ (hum/run. Dodgy arms deals. the collapse of the mobile phone set and general moral bankruptcy all come under the hammer. though Sue Cusson's well-behaved musical adaptations. performed by a harmoniously talented quintet. soften the blow considerably. A shame. bttt worth it for the words anyway. (Neil Cooper)

I Requiem (Fringe) CM P. The Cafe Royal (Venue 47) 556 254‘). until 3| Aug (not Suns) 6pm. £5 (£3.50).

THEATRE REVIEW

SURVIVING DESIRE

Adapting films into plays is a tricky number to pull off. but if any director works with one eye on the

stage it has to be US cultmeister Hal Hartley. Surviving Desire concerns the obsession of a literature professor with both Dostoevsky and yup you guessed it one of his female students. The tale is kept pumping along with wholly ironic song and dance numbers. and the cast give it their best shot. particularly Philip Buck as the edgy professor and Paul Dinnen as his colleague with higher ambitions. Humorous and intelligent yet oddly unfulfilling. this should be seen with tongue steadfastly lodged in cheek. (Brian Donaldson) I Surviving Desire (Fringe) Rough Magic Theatre Company. Garage Theatre (Venue 81) 229 2401, until 31 Aug (not Suns) 6.20pm. £6.50 (£4).

Brendon Burns: hair-raising humour

****

BRENDON BURNS - 6PM TIME TO GET UP FDR WORK

'Come on. You need me in your lives.’ taunts upstart Australian comedian Brendon Burns as he launches into his hair-raising act. ()ne part adolescent. one part washed-up hippy. at 25 he possesses that ntost thrilling comic quality a sense of suspense. Though the laughs are plentiful. you catch your breath at titnes wondering whether lte will really hold it together. or if the teenager inside him will storm off and slain the bedroom door.

His comedy aims high. ‘I have a theory of the Universe.’ he says. and instead of wanting to slap him you think. °()K let's hear it.‘ (Catriona Craig) I Brendon Burns - 6pm And Time To Get Up (Fringe) Brendan Burns. Footlights and Firkin (Venue 85) 22‘) 8368. until 26 Aug. 7pm. £5.50 (£5).

Unmissable Very good Worth seeing

Below average You’ve been warned

J gg. ,/ life’s rich tapestry: Miranda Richardson as Orlando

*****

ORLANDO

Events that span centuries, a major switch of gender, lush landscapes that range from the Elizabethan court to a frozen London river to the hedonism of a Turkish palace. A rich tapestry indeed - and all the more remarkable for being realised by a single actress on an almost bare stage. The vivid imagery that emerges from Robert Wilson’s staging of Virginia Woolf’s novel Orlando is a testament to the poetic depth of Woolt’s prose and also to a truly awesome performance by Miranda Richardson.

The impact of Richardson’s work goes way beyond applauding her amazing feat of memory, reciting two hours’ worth of densely textured monologue. This is, quite simply, the best single performance 1 have ever seen on stage. Although seen at Orlando’s first dress rehearsal preview, Richardson’s precision of movement and vocal control was total. tier screen roles have rarely hinted at the wider skills she possesses: at times Wilson’s demands take the actress close to physical theatre and mime, as detailed body gestures and smooth glides across the stage lift the story to a more abstract level. A demanding piece of work for both performer and audience, but Richardson’s presence takes us to the story’s emotional core. (Alan Morrison) Orlando (Festival) Miranda Richardson, Royal Lyceum Theatre, 225 5755, until 21 Aug (not 18), 7.30pm, Eli-£20.

Kenny Branagh's Performance Masterclass. 0y llyvel Berry. Learn improvisation the 0.0.0.0 tray! “'1'lng/imnit'si play c'i'i'r” - City/m Berry

0-31st August [Except 11th] 8.50pm. liloray House Studio 1. Venue 1110. £5.00 and £3.50.

Tickets available frOm Fringe liox office tel: 0131226 5138 or EVA Office on 0131-556 0102

AUSTRALIAN COMICS

@ THE GILDED BALLOON THE FUNNIEST

ON THE FRINGE BLIMEY

- its Matt King-

Australia 's hottest young comic spent 25 years being sad & lonely in Hertfordshire - This is that story.

“Both sad and very, very funny t a a * 7;," Adelaide Advertiser

“Knicker wetting hilarity” Rip It Up

BACKSTAGE THEATRE, 4:00PM

SELL OUT-MELBOURNE COMEDY FESTIVAL

GREG FLEET 8. JANEI ANDERSON

1N LOVE

no one can hear you scream

Scenes from relationships from waking up to breaking up

BACKSTAGE THEATRE, 5:15PM

Greg Fleet in

21 \‘ElillS lli

it Lllllli I SLEEVE“

sun:

or HOW TO TAKE DRUGS AND INFLUENCE PEOPLE

“A Wild Great Show" The Herald-Sun (Melbourne)

GILDED BALLOON STUDIO THEATRE, 7:45PM

CREATOR OF THE 1995 FRINGE HTT “THAI-DIE"

AUSTRALIA’S NOTES 1' COMIC

JUDITH LUGY IN

AN OSSIBLE R EAM

You thought fire Manson family was dysfunctional? Well meet the Lucy’s.

"The best standup, sit down lounge around comic i've seen" The Sunday Age (Melbourne)

GILDED BALLOON II

DOWNSTAIRS,9:30pm

BOOK NOW 226 2151

OR FRINGE BOX OFFICE

A

The List l6-22 Aug I996 43

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