Edinburgh Fringe 2017 – Page 4

Tom Allen: Absolutely

By Lisa Clark

In the past I’ve enjoyed Tom Allen as part of a group show and as a guest on The Great British Bakeoff an Extra Slice, so I thought I must check out one of his full festival shows. It was very much as I’d expected; very slick, very mainstream and very funny.

It is truly lovely to be greeted by Tom at the door while Liza sings Cabaret over the speakers, in case you were in any doubt as to what you were in for. This helps set up a chummy atmosphere that is extended into the traditional ‘getting to know everyone in the front row with backhanded insults’ as originally perfected by Julian Clary. Tom’s style is very different however, this is pure standup and he talks so fast you can feel exhausted, especially if you are trying to laugh at the jokes as they wizz by.

Absolutely is made up of several slabs of storytelling, bookended by two types of party. He begins in his childhood with the children’s party and finally, always the outsider, as the token gay at a Hen’s party. Tom points out the exhausting hideousness for all involved. In between Tom shares his trauma and joy in recently finally getting his drivers licence including that first terrifying time he had to go on a freeway, apparently, you’re not allowed to get on one as a Learner here in the UK!

Tom dipped his toes into a bit of politics, but only in the shallows and not for too long. He ticked off the topics of Brexit, refugees, Trump and had a nice dig at the privileged Baby boomers along the way. It’s strange for me to see a Festival show by a gay comedian who doesn’t mention same-sex marriage… Oh. Yes. That’s right, they’ve won that battle in the UK.

Tom Allen has been performing standup for twelve years, so he knows how to entertain an audience with well honed and hilarious stories. A polished Festival show you could take your mum to.

Absolutely is on at Pleasance Courtyard until August 27

https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/tom-allen-absolutely

Sarah Bennetto – All My Life’s Mistakes, Catalogued (Volume One)

By Colin Flaherty

This show is exactly what it says on the tin – Sarah Bennetto presents us with a list of mistakes that she has made, telling the story behind each or making a short joke. While they seem to be ranked according to the importance she gives them, the order in which they are revealed works up to the core message of the show.

I could be pedantic and say that not all on the list are “mistakes” (we have regrets, circumstance and character traits in amongst them) but they do fit in perfectly with the overall story Bennetto is telling. We hear about embarrassing social faux pas, wacky hijinks (see Sarah’s social media for coverage of the Rainbow Unicorn Piñata Saga), cute familial rituals and many missed opportunities.

Things take a sharp turn into serious territory with a shocking revelation and the laughs come to a halt. It does seem that this issue is still a bit too raw for Sarah to scrutinise too closely as she hasn’t found a way to successfully find the humour in it. This tends to push this performance firmly into comedy as therapy territory but it’s an important issue that she needs to talk about. Thankfully some comedy relief is in sight with the cute but doomed colourful fella who has been sitting on her table throughout the show.

Bennetto is a charming and delightful performer. Her storytelling skills are top notch (unsurprising as she is creator of the regular Storyteller’s Club night and touring concern) but her observational stand up is just as strong. This is a immensely personal show and she steps up to the challenge of finding humour amongst the disappointments.

All My Life’s Mistakes, Catalogued (Volume One) is on at Laughing Horse @ Espionage until August 26

https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/sarah-bennetto-all-my-life-s-mistakes-catalogued-volume-one-1

This show is free (donation)

Big Howard Little Howard – Man and Boy

By Colin Flaherty

Big Howard and Little Howard have been performing primarily to children over the past decade and in this “adult” show they attempt to present a sophisticated piece about being a better person. Naturally Big Howard Read’s efforts are railroaded by Little Howard’s hilarious naivety and manager Roger T Pigeon’s vision of base humour.

In this multimedia spectacular, we get plenty of singing and dancing (you’ll be singing “Haberdashery” for days to come), clairvoyancy by unique means, attempts at political humour and heckling by angry cartoons. There is some nice comedic melancholy to contrast the pure silliness and a few hilarious digs at the comedy industry and Free Fringe.

Read plays the perfect straight man to all the other characters in this amusingly gentle power struggle. A perpetual six year old, Little Howard is the same adorable innocent he has always been and his hijinks and amusing quips are brilliant. A number of peripheral characters pop up as jokes that were rejected from other projects which are fun when used as a single joke but a bit laboured when repeated.

Compared to Read’s early work, the interactions with the animations are seamless – I guess the technology had to eventually catch up with Read’s immense vision of this cartoon / human hybrid. I doff my hat to him for this impressive feat.

Even though it stars beloved character Little Howard, DO NOT be tempted to bring the Rug Rats to this show. First, they won’t get into the 18+ Pub and secondly, there are frequent adult references, innuendo and occasional cursing. It’s about time we adults got to have some cheeky fun with this hilariously brilliant Human and Cartoon double act!

Man and Boy is on at Banshee Labyrinth until August 27 with extra shows at La Belle Angèle (August 17, 20, 24 and 25)

https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on#q=%22Big%20Howard%20Little%20Howard%3A%20Man%20and%20Boy%22

This show is free (donation)

Angela Barnes – Fortitude

By Ron Bingham

Angela’s stand-up show this year examines the good and bad points about turning forty, while discussing the merits of disused nuclear fall-out shelters in the UK and the Cold War. These are a lot more entertaining and relevant subjects than you would think as, with the election of Donald Trump, there may be a few people out there who are interested in building and stocking their own shelters. Angela also talks about her childhood and how many of the dangers older people accepted when they were kids have been neutralised. We also have material about children, partners, pets and a little about her work on TV.

There was a lot of excellent material in the show, and the audience (full house) were very much enjoying themselves from start to finish. Angela is an engaging storyteller, and there is barely a pause in the rhythm of the show. Some material is not for the younger people, but for the adults, it’s a fun and educational hour of laughter.

Fortitude is on at Pleasance Courtyard until August 27
https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/angela-barnes-fortitude

Shappi Khorsandi – Mistress and Misfit

By Lisa Clark

I’ve been a fan of Shappi’s since seeing her in Melbourne and reading her autobiography and went along knowing nothing about the subject matter of this show. It was certainly different from previous outings, being based around a glamorous, historical figure other than herself, but also less surprisingly, it was utterly entertaining.

Mistress & Misfit is an autobiographical show of sorts, but it is mainly a biography of another fascinating woman, Emma, Lady Hamilton, lover of Horatio Nelson, someone I knew nothing about. The Space she is performing in is a lecture theatre, perfect for her show and one of the most comfortable for the audience I’ve been in. Turns out Emma, Lady Hamilton had a pretty amazing life, starting in poverty, becoming a sex worker, courtesan, married to a Lord, then a famous mistress and finally ending in poverty again. I’ll leave it to Shappi to fill in all the extraordinary details, for she does it so well.

Shappi also manages to wind some personal stories through the show. In this way she is able to explain why she relates to the story of Emma so intimately. She relates to feeling outside of the society she lives in, from the ‘wrong class’ and trying to learn it’s secrets and fit in. She also understands having powerful men treat you like crap. I love the way Shappi is able to crack jokes and talk about sexual politics though history, her own as well as Emma’s, without sounding like she is being a political comedian. It’s all very chatty and friendly.

Shappi is a delightful raconteur and will always put on an excellent Festival show. Mistress & Misfit should satisfy the history geeks, Shappi fans and pretty much anyone just popping in to see an interesting and funny comedy Festival show.

Mistress and Misfit is on at Assembly George Square Studios until August 27

https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/shappi-khorsandi-mistress-and-misfit-1

Next Best Thing – How to Be Good at Everything

By Ron Bingham

The kindest summary I can make of this show is “disappointing.” Katie Davison and Jay Bennett are young, attractive and full of energy, but the show has very little in the way of actual material. It mostly consisted of dragging people out of the audience to be in the scenes. The house lights never went down, so it felt more like a conference than a comedy show. Most of the humour was very juvenile (I need a wee, I’ve done a little poo in my pants, etc) and the actors lacked skills in improvisation and couldn’t make any emotional connection with the audience.

Sadly, it isn’t enough to be young and cute at the Edinburgh Fringe, the girls have a bit of acting talent, but it’s wasted in this show that clearly does not suit them. And if you think I’m being harsh, you should have heard some of the comments from fellow audience members as we were leaving the show.

How to Be Good at Everything is on at Pleasance Courtyard until August 28

https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/next-best-thing-how-to-be-good-at-everything