FESTIVAL COMEDY REVIEWS AT A GLANCE
Discover Ben Target ●●●●● Throughout Discover Ben Target, the gathered punters are taken on numerous bizarre and wonderful journeys including a casual stroll down Cowgate in search of a stick. Oh, and then there’s the 40-a-side game of volleyball. Whilst a handful of unfortunate audience members do become bait for the bearded comic there is no greater humiliation than that which he bestows upon himself. (Jamie Cameron) Underbelly, Cowgate, 0844 545 8252, until 26 Aug, 4.55pm, £9–£10 (£8–£9). Ed Eales-White ●●●●● Eales- White’s likeable show attempts to create a tableau of the dull and the invisible, the people you don’t want to be cornered by at a party. Step forward the all-knowing pub bore, alcoholic pothead, keep-fit instructor, 24-hour garage attendant and many more. This is pure hats out of the box stuff and as such it misses as much as it hits but when it engages it really works. (Paul Dale) Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, until 27 Aug, 5.45pm, £7.50– £9 (£6–£8). Felicity Ward ●●●●● More Brendon Burns than Tina Fey, but only just, Ward delivers a killer show about the ludicrous optimism of early relationships, the humiliation of moving back in with your mum when they end, and the surreal ways you piece yourself together afterwards. Ward is charismatically theatrical, and so committed to keeping the good jokes rolling, that what you get is not mere squirmy over-sharing, but a filthy, high-speed hour of breathless laughs. (Charlotte Runcie) Underbelly, Bristo Square, 0844 545 8252, until 27 Aug, 10pm, £10–£12 (£9–£11). Ford & Akram ●●●●● Embarking on a voyage to fulfil an elderly relative’s last request, the show consists of a catalogue of skits in which the duo attempt to integrate ‘Bamp’ into the English language. The show owes more to the warmth, charm and charisma of the regularly bumbling performers than it does to a loose storyline that merely provides a platform for the duo to work their magic. (Jamie Cameron) Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, until 27 Aug, 3.15pm, £9–£9.50 (£7.50–£8). Fred MacAulay ●●●●● Now a firm Fringe institution, MacAulay could coast by on easy charm alone. But that would never do, and even when he tackles well-trodden topics like air travel there’s always the safe feeling that he’ll have put in the graft for a proper big laugh. Much of the material is aimed at his overwhelmingly middle-aged Scottish crowd but his meticulously plotted hour has enough for everyone. (Murray Robertson) The Stand III & IV, 558 7272, until 26 Aug (not 20), 7.45pm, £10. Funk Rocket 5000 ●●●●● This is a brilliantly bleak, bone-dry mental health comedy, which suggests the boundaries between patient and doctor are often more blurred than we might imagine. Lee Fenwick brings a compelling blend of pathos and bluster to Dr Benoit, a dubious psychiatrist trialling rock‘n’roll as therapy for depressive patient Rachel (Rachel Lancaster). But while Fenwick is good, it’s Lancaster who’s the star of this piece, delivering the show’s best lines in the world’s most unrelenting monotone. (Nione Meakin) The Caves, 556 5375, until 26 Aug, 12.55pm, £5–£6 £4–£5). Gearoid Farrelly ●●●●● When Farrelly hits his stride, the Dubliner is a fine stand-up with some acerbic, sharply- delivered bon mots that frequently make a section of the audience guffaw. After a nicely pitched introductory film featuring his mum, the show moves on to tell of his life and its ‘turbulence.’ With greater consistency, Farrelly has the potential to be a brilliant act. 46 THE LIST 16–23 Aug 2012
(Marissa Burgess) Gilded Balloon Teviot, 622 6552, until 26 Aug, 8.15pm, £8.50–£9.50 (£7.50–£8.50) Graters ●●●●● James wants to be a stand up. Julian calls himself an entertainer and cheerfully ditches his friend to talk to two women in the pub. Played out to the side of this tableau are Julian’s ‘crap’ ideas he is pitching to the women. The performances smack of a lack of rehearsal, they’re clunky and in the dramatic silences you’re not entirely sure whether one of the actors has forgotten their lines. (Marissa Burgess) Underbelly, Cowgate, 0844 545 8252, until 26 Aug, 11.50am, £8.50–£9.50 (£7.50–£8.50) The Great Puppet Horn ●●●●● If improv and musical comedy are the poor relations in this game, shadow puppetry has to be the form’s black sheep. While there’s no doubting the technical ability on show with this duo (though the hour wasn’t without its fluffs), their story about polar bears, Sean Connery and the LibDem coalition is weak in the extreme. (Brian Donaldson) Underbelly, Cowgate, 0844 545 8252, until 26 Aug, 5.30pm, £9–£10.50 (£8–£9.50). Hannah Gadsby ●●●●● Gadsby wanders onto stage, already hilarious in her waistcoat and coy pride in her art history slide show. She then delivers a unique take on gender and sexuality, unwrapping the many homophobic preconceptions that people have on a conscious or subconscious level. And it’s all very funny. She could be less Miranda Hart-esque self-deprecating (even if it is endearing) and with a touch more work on timing and delivery, this would be pretty damn perfect. (Phoebe Cooke) Gilded Balloon Teviot, 622 6552, until 26 Aug, 8.10pm, £9.50– £10.50 (£8.50–£9.50). Hanks and Conran ●●●●● A Myra Hindley dooppelganger (their own observation) meets a Jennifer Tilly lookalike (not their observation) in an amiable but rough-edged affair which starts off well as the pair banter back and forth about their individual traits. It all goes horrifically wrong with their staging of a play which features Cannon and Ball (as played by two audience members) as this ultimately end-of-the- pier hour performed in a dank cellar fizzles out. (Brian Donaldson) The Caves, 556 5375, until 26 Aug, 5.20pm, £7.50 (£6.50). Helen Arney ●●●●● Science pixie Arney mashes together physics, maths and music in a show that teeters the verge between lecture and gig. Armed with her trusty ukulele, she bolsters her geek credentials with Venn diagrams and graphs to which she re-refers throughout the performance to demonstrate her mother’s faltering pride in her career. But if Arney stuck to singing and ditched the chatter she’d go from likeable to loveable. (Kirstyn Smith) Underbelly, Cowgate, 0844 545 8252, until 26 Aug, 6.15pm, £10–£11 (£9–£10). Horse & Louis ●●●●● A promising start in which this musical duo tell us exactly who they’re not (Morse & Lewis, Flight of the Conchords etc) is hamstrung by weak ditties about Kurt Cobain, Jesus and crows, and a less than devastating running routine about their act being cursed. (Brian Donaldson) Underbelly, Cowgate, 0844 545 8252, until 26 Aug, 12.55pm, £9–£9.50 (£8–£8.50). I Am, I Am ●●●●● For ones so young it’s obscene how much confidence these duelling acoustic troubadours from Cambridge have. With their genre shifting ditties and punning rhymes I Am, I Am are most obviously comparable to Flight of the Conchords but their very British aesthetic (both ginger, one beefy, the other weedy), love of cock gags and a certain sense of slapstick minstrelsy puts them closer to the early strumming stand-up of Billy Connelly or Jasper Carrott. These boys are built to last, catch them while you can. (Paul Dale) Gilded Balloon Teviot, 622 6552, until 27 Aug (not 20), 11.15pm, £8–£9 (£6–£7.50). The Imaginary Radio Programme ●●●●● Drennon Davis’ sort-of one-man two-person show is a real oddity. He pieces together comedy songs, beatboxing and short sketches as he imagines a journey across the radio waves, with sections split up by the familiar burst of static between channels. Davis’ vocal dexterity is evident through a range of impressions and singing styles but the writing is rather weak and towards the end it feels like an endless medley of vaguely amusing songs. (Murray Robertson) Assembly Roxy, 623 3030, until 26 Aug, 10.30pm, £10–£12 (£8–£10). Iszi Lawrence ●●●●● As sharp as a pleat but as twisted as a public school tie, Lawrence is the real deal. Skinny, bespectacled and bequiffed she looks like a feminist cliché but has better comedy chops than comedians twice her age. Achingly posh (she’s from Oxford), bi-sexual, nerdy and pedantic Lawrence has a broad spectrum from which to propel her colourful musings. Tapping a reservoir of digression and disassembly, comparisons to Stewart Lee have not been unfounded. (Paul Dale) The Stand II, 558 7272, until 26 Aug, 1.10pm, £8 (£7). Jarred Christmas ●●●●● Christmas launches his show with such energetic gusto it’s a wonder he’s not flat out on the floor after the first minute. A seasoned compère, he is masterful at controlling an audience as his whimsy flits from World War II to the Olympics in the bat of an eyelid; while he has nothing profound to say, a sustained diatribe against an arrogant youth is a highlight. (Murray Robertson) Gilded Balloon Teviot, 622 6552, until 26 Aug, 9.30pm, £10.50–£11.50 (£9–£10). Jonny & The Baptists ●●●●● Ex-Roaring Boys frontman Jonny Donahoe transfers his wild, raw energy to a new trio, accompanied by his equally quirky Baptists on guitar and violin. Seldom do audiences see such a lively act at the festival, whole-heartedly committed to political satire and striving for a balance between surreal departures and social commentary. The enthusiasm, avidity and passion of the band radiate well after the gig has finished, with Tenacious D-esque fieriness and heart. (Andrew Latimer) Underbelly, Cowgate, 0844 545 8252, until 26 Aug, 9.10pm, £9–£10 (£8–£9). Juliet Meyers ●●●●● Meyers starts strong on the theme of inspirational bon mots and letters of the alphabet that often adorn the nation’s fridges, held on by the power of magnetism. Full of energy and engaging from the off, her demeanour is winning. A scattered collection of topical (and not so current) anecdotes skirt around her theme and exposes a gentle, inoffensive and charming comedic approach. (Suzanne Black) The Stand II, 558 7272, until 26 Aug, noon, £8 (£7). Leads & Stern ●●●●● A promising double act debut features some solid bits undercut by flimsier moments. The hour’s running gag is a pleasing one about the death of their third member (a black rap artist) just before August which left them in the lurch. The bank robbery, Dickens punning and the doctor telling a patient about their ‘results’ work better than the granny Olympics and hen-night in a war-zone routines. (Brian Donaldson) Underbelly, Cowgate, 0844 545 8252, until 26 Aug, 5pm, £9–£10 (£8–£9). Liam Mullone ●●●●● Determinism and misanthropy are Mullone’s currency. His is a libertarian agenda, his disappointment in all the classes
is palpable, he believes a cuddly toy is genetically superior to your average human being but his calls for insurrection are double-sided and bathed in surrealism. Mullone never takes the easy route through his observations about class, childcare and weddings. (Paul Dale) The Stand III & IV, 558 7272, until 26 Aug, 3.30pm, £8 (£7). A Little Perspective with Imaan ●●●●● Bring 3ft, 6in high has given Imaan plenty of material for his debut Fringe show. With a mixture of hidden-camera short films and stand-up he displays and debunks the various perceptions people have of him just because he’s small. Though only 22, the Lebanese-Aussie has been performing for seven years and the experience shows with his sharp wit delivering a raft of finely honed gags, most with an acerbic edge. (Marissa Burgess) Gilded Balloon Teviot, 622 6552, until 27 Aug, midnight, £9–£10 (£8–£9). Marek Larwood ●●●●● The former We Are Klangster’s solo show is manic and messy. However, Larwood holds it together, and generates considerable laughter, chiefly by dint of his unenviable - and sort of charming – ability to make himself look like a complete prat via spoofs of, variously, a period drama, an improv session and a comedy quiz show. Larwood’s spot- on deconstruction of an observational comedy routine could very easily be expanded to a show in its own right. (Miles Fielder) Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, until 26 Aug, 6.20pm, £10–£12. Mark Little ●●●●● The poster for The Bullshit Artist suggests Little is a no-nonsense man-of-the-people, countering pretentiousness with honest, blokey observations. Unfortunately, the crowd wants Joe Mangel but gets a wannabe Mark Thomas, but one that lacks the conviction and hard facts that make Thomas’ polemics so blistering. Little hits his stride once or twice, and his attempt to spread a message of love is well-meant, but it’s not enough to make up for shambolic, under-prepared material. (Niki Boyle) Assembly George Square, 623 3030, until 27 Aug, 10.20pm, £15– £16 (£13–£14). Matthew Crosby ●●●●● If you play with fire you have to expect to get burned now and again. But the crowd collectively clench as the Pappy’s man has a serious technical hitch, the relief palpable (not least from Crosby himself) when his laptop kicks back in. Perhaps he never fully recovers from that early shock as this year’s affair doesn’t quite hit the heights of his 2011 solo debut. But there are some hilarious bits such as the Paranormal Activity prank he plays on his girlfriend which goes awry. (Brian Donaldson) Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, until 27 Aug, 4pm, £10–£12 (£8.50–£10.50). Michael Redmond ●●●●● Now in his seventh decade, the comedy circuit veteran’s experience shows. It’s in his trademark laidback style that he delivers his measured material and playfully interacts with the audience, taking a straw poll of who likes his droopy moustache and consults us on everything from religion to eating habits. He rounds off proceedings with a particularly rock’n’roll finale closing an enjoyable and entertaining hour. (Marissa Burgess) Gilded Balloon Teviot, 622 6552, until 27 Aug (not 20), 5.15pm, £8.50–£9.50 (£7–£8). Naz Osmanoglu ●●●●● ‘Think palace, not hut!’ encourages Osmanoglu, as the audience settle into their surroundings, our host’s gallus head gear alluding (or not) to the fact that he is 19th in line to the throne of Turkey’s former Ottoman Empire. Like so many comedians before him, our funny man suffers from bad daddy syndrome and