list.co.uk/festival Addy van der Borgh ●●●●● Given his frequent recourse to mirthful actorly pronouncements – ‘forsooth!’ and the like – Van der Borgh must have been a thespian in a previous life. That, along with his merrily clownish countenance, serves him well in a thoroughly engaging show themed around the use and abuse of language. He’s also pretty hot on the harmonica. (Miles Fielder) The Stand II, 558 7272, until 29 Aug, 5.25pm, £8 (£7). Andi Osho ●●●●● The recollection of being subjected to racist abuse as a kid inspired this East End of London stand- up to explore her Nigerian roots and appraise the state of Britain’s dysfunctional multi-cultural society. Serious stuff, but Osho’s funny with it, bouncing between childhood memories and commentary on current affairs. (Miles Fielder) The Stand III & IV, 558 7272, until 29 Aug, 5.35pm, £8 (£7). Ava Vidal ●●●●● When is a Fringe hour not a Fringe hour? When it’s Ava Vidal clocking off at just under 40 minutes. Which was a shame (for paying punters and the comic herself) as she was busy delivering a captivating story about her recent break-up from a ‘bad man’ set up in the context of being an embarrassment to her teenage daughter. The natural sympathy a crowd would have for this tale is negated by being so short-changed. (Brian Donaldson) The Stand III & IV, 558 7272, until 29 Aug, 3.15pm, £8 (£7). Baby Wants Candy ●●●●● Compared to the Showstopper! crew there’s an unappealing coldness between performers and audience here: with no pre-amble whatsoever, this US troupe get a suggestion and create an improvised musical (today’s topic: cheese and fish). A couple of performers lift the larking- around out of the humdrum but, like the dish on offer, it leaves behind a slightly sour taste. (Brian Donaldson) Assembly Hall, 623 3030, until 30 Aug, 5.35pm, £13–£15 (£11–£13). Broad Comedy ●●●●● ‘We got a crazy show for you,’ hails the leader of this all-female American sketch group. If your idea of ‘crazy’ features horribly laboured songs about abstinence, tampons and penis size, then this will have your head spinning. One routine saves the day: an inspired piece from a far right cheerleader band. (Brian Donaldson) Assembly Rooms, 623 3030, until 29 Aug, 9.45pm, £12–£14 (£11–£13). Carole Jahme ●●●●● Dressed as a ‘humanzee’ in a cocktail dress and accompanied by a toy monkey in a baby chair, Jahme presents a bizarre affectation of a lecture featuring a series of home videos with children dressed as apes. Later we’re treated to slide shows where she wastes some time identifying monkeys. Seemingly assembled at random, there is nothing to redeem this. Barren, baffling and humiliating for all involved. (Murray Robertson) Zoo Southside, 662 6892, until 30 Aug, 7.45pm, £8 (£7). Chef! ●●●●● Billed as a beat-box action comedy, Chef! is all it claims to be and more. A mystical chef, outrunning two bumbling, black-clad fighters, finds his way to a modern kitchen, where crazy dance, sight-gag comedy and lots of laughs ensue. Choreographed to perfection, even the plentiful slapstick is
Festival ComedyReviews at a Glance
done with precision and includes some hilarious audience interaction. Fabulous, physical fun. (Carmody Wilson) Assembly Rooms, 623 3030, until 30 Aug, 4pm, £12–£13 (£11–£12). Clarkson and Crouch ●●●●● Two jolly men perform a piece about Albion Avenue, the ‘most broken street in broken Britain’. With ‘Ghost Town’ playing during each post-scene blackout, serious points might be being made here but they’re lost in sketches in which Byron and Shelley seek a life beyond roadsweeping and one-eyed aliens who converse entirely in classic advertising slogans. More clever than funny. (Brian Donaldson) Gilded Balloon Teviot, 622 6552, until 30 Aug, 1.30pm, £8.50–£9.50 (£7.50–£8.50). Daddy Ate All My Easter Eggs and Never Replaced Them ●●●●● Now, I realise they’re young and that, but someone really should have taken this lot aside and advised them that their horrible skit about the Professors of Scottishness isn’t really the kind of thing to help to ingratiate yourselves upon a welcoming public. That aside, there’s a clunky ditty about a Disney adaptation of Jack the Ripper and one decent pun about Lidl. (Brian Donaldson) C soco, 0845 260 1234, until 30 Aug, 6.55pm, £8.50–£9.50 (£7.50–£8.50). David O’Doherty ●●●●● The Casio keyboard remains but this year the mild- mannered Dublin comic returns with less song and more chat. And also more book reading, mainly from his recent publication 100 Facts About Pandas. Bung in a kaleidoscopic range of observational indie knick-knacks, wound up with an impressionable series of hoots, arm-flailing and floor-rolls, and we have a good, honest, O’Doherty set. To his braying followers this is all spot- on and a touch of improv mid-ditty illustrates that this is a reciprocal love. (Rosalie Doubal) Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, until 30 Aug, 10.20pm, £11–£12.50 (£9.50–£11). Dead Cat Bounce ●●●●● Last year they certainly had the rock stylings off pat but this time around they’ve nailed the comedy too. This four-piece from Dublin is the finished article, with songs about running with midgets, one that pokes fun at the cute frontman and a lovely staged song/skit about sacking the drummer. Surely now poised to go from cult hit to Minchin-like stardom. (Marissa Burgess) Gilded Balloon Teviot, 622 6552, until 29 Aug, 9.45pm, £8.50–£9.50 (£7.50–£8.50). Everything Else You Always Wanted to Know About Life (But Didn’t Care to Ask) ●●●●● It could have been a trick of the light, but did foursome Bad Bread just follow up the word ‘queries’ with a limp wrist gesture? Twice? At least not all of their largely-poor material takes us back to the mid-70s as they perform sketches introduced by a kiddie voiceover asking life’s big questions, such as ‘where do babies come from?’ and ‘what will I be when I grow up?’ with almost all of them tediously featuring a ‘spin’ on a historical/literary tale: Henry VIII seeking an internet date/Winnie the Pooh in prison/Christian Bale being angry. (Brian Donaldson) Underbelly, 08445 458 252, until 29 Aug, 12.15pm, £8.50–£9.50 (£7.50–£8.50). Felicity Ward ●●●●● Being less a ‘moron’ (her word) than a victim of circumstance, Felicity Ward has to inflate mere embarrassing mishaps into excruciating humiliations to get her desired reaction which, with some neat turns of phrase, she does. Aware that her brave but scatological finale isn’t everyone’s ideal takeaway memory, she buffers it with a song, proving storytelling’s her forte, not music. (Matt Boothman) Gilded Balloon Teviot, 622 6552, until 30 Aug, 6.45pm, £9.50–£10.50 (£8.50-£9.50). Foil, Arms and Hog ●●●●● Do you think shouting is funny? Do you like sketches that start nowhere and then stay there for a very long time, far longer than the weak premise would ever normally allow? Would you end yourself at the sight of three guys pretending that vegetables were musical instruments? If so, then you were made a bit wrong, and this show is especially for you. (Gordon Eldrett) The Caves, 556 5375, until 29 Aug, 9.30pm, £8.50 (£6.50). Ginger and Black ●●●●● The knockabout tale of life inside a woman’s prison and the incidents that led some inmates to get there is produced with wit and verve by Eri Jackson (she’s ginger) and Daniel Taylor (he’s black). Happily, the celeb reference count is limited to an extended Angela Lansbury routine as this offbeat tale rattles to its satisfying conclusion. (Brian Donaldson) Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, until 30 Aug, 5.45pm, £8.50–£9.50 (£7–£8). Hannah Gadsby ●●●●● Inspired by Cliff Young, a legendary Australian who won an ultramarathon at the age of 61, Hannah Gadbsy sets off to walk across England, proving it’s never too late to achieve something. Her story is one of genuine warmth and heartbreak as she battles both depression and smug bastards to make Cliff proud and reduce an audience to a confusing mix of laughter and tears. (Thomas Meek) Assembly Rooms, 623 3030, until 29 Aug, 8.30pm, £10–£12 (£9–£11). Idiots of Ants ●●●●● At least the second show this Fringe to feature a drummer being fired via the medium of his band’s songwriting, this latest über- hi-tech offering from the IoA is a patchy affair that works beautifully in places (the sound effects sketch; the teeth- brushing scene) but is let down by an array of poor choices. Ultimately, their ambition to fully stretch themselves through technology is threatening to dilute their impact. (Brian Donaldson) Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, until 30 Aug, 8.25pm, £10–£11 (£8.50–£9.50). James Dowdeswell ●●●●● You want to like him, you really do. And in another context maybe this gentle show about Dowdeswell’s discovery that his great-grandfather worked with Charlie Chaplin would pass muster. Alas, his mediocre material and rather uneasy delivery are roundly outclassed by even the second tier of Fringe comics. An entertaining Samuel L. Jackson impression aside, pretty underwhelming stuff. (Sam Healy) The Stand II, 558 7272, until 29 Aug, 3pm, £7 (£5). Justin Moorhouse ●●●●● If you want to know exactly where you are positioned on the class ladder, Moorhouse has a game to test your status. A likeable show that marries
invention with nostalgia, the northern comic takes us back to an age where his family’s summer holidays were a modest affair. Witnessing his mum split one boiled egg between six was the moment he decided to build a better world for his own brood. (Brian Donaldson) Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, until 30 Aug, 9.30pm, £10.50–£12.50 (£9–£11). Late Night Gimp Fight! ●●●●● Despite the pretensions to political incorrectness from this five-man troupe, there are only a handful of jokes that are especially dubious, and these are by far the funniest. The rest of the hour is padded out with mediocre offerings that have the whiff of a low-rent Footlights production. (Gordon Eldrett) Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, until 29 Aug, 11pm, £9–£10 (£7.50–£8.50). Legend of the Card Ninja ●●●●● Jav Jarquin flips the whole concept of the card trick on its head, flinging playing cards like throwing stars to knock over small objects or embed themselves in pieces of fruit. Not all the tricks work first time, but warmly self- deprecating stand-up segments get the audience on side, so by the climactic stunt the whole room is rooting for him. (Matt Boothman) Assembly Hall, 623 3030, until 29 Aug, 9.15pm, £10–£11 (£9–£10). Magicians ●●●●● A daft and slightly irritating tale of two rubbish magicians (or are they?) canters along amid a backdrop of thwarted ambition and misplaced idolatry. Remove the mild innuendo, tone down the psychological torment and this could easily be a more successful kids’ show. (Brian Donaldson) The Caves, 556 5375, until 29 Aug, noon, £7.50–£8.50. Mark Allen ●●●●● In our time- starved, online lives, Mark Allen investigates savouring rather than saving time over 90 languorous minutes. The concept, although not earth-shattering, is admirably adhered to with Allen’s confident delivery often resulting in pleasing set-ups that ultimately fail, though the final pay-off is genius. (Suzanne Black) The GRV, 226 0000, until 29 Aug, 4.40pm, £5. Mark Watson ●●●●● The elevation of this frenetic Fringe staple from sweaty huts to the ‘super-league’ of vast halls mercifully hasn’t stilted his ability to captivate a crowd while playing on his own inadequacies. This year’s tale is of celeb status (whether real or imagined) and features Derren Brown, ‘dad noises’, pear cider and a sausage roll. Shame the Welsh accent has virtually vanished though. (Brian Donaldson) Assembly Hall, 623 3030, until 30 Aug, 10.30pm, £16.50–£18.50 (£15.50–£17.50). Mary Barrel is Really Good at Things ●●●●● LA comic and playwright Carrie Barrett is disconcertingly convincing in her role as hyper-dork Mary Barrel, an annoying, awkward 13-year-old who’s obsessed with best friends, sleepovers and party invites (or her lack thereof). Her over- excited, part-improvised but tediously goofy life skills ‘seminar’ is part- redeemed by friendly audience participation, pathetic human beat- boxing and bunny-boiling dialogue with her sound-engineer sidekick, Chris. (Nicola Meighan) Jury’s Inn, 0845 508 8387, until 28 Aug, 5.10pm, £7 (£5). 26 Aug–9 Sep 2010 THE LIST 29