Squirrel Comedy – Page 150 – We're Nuts About Australian Comedy

The Red Richardson Experience

By Ron Bingham

Red Richardson came to stand up from the world of internet videos a few years ago and this marks his second year at the Fringe. Unfortunately my hopes of seeing a fresh new stand up talent were dashed as this lazy show progressed.

The show started with a ten minute warm-up by fellow comedian Ed North, in which he basically chatted to the audience looking for something to work with. Then Red came on and delivered a 35-40 minute set filled with rambling stories which petered out without a punchlines, random racist and sexist comments, and self-deprecating comments about being from Devon, living in South London and being a twenty-something middle class layabout. It was the sort of routine you would expect to hear late at night in a London pub from someone pushed up on stage by his drunken mates.

If Red expects to make any money from this Festival, rather than just using the show as an excuse to party at the Fringe, he really needs to put down the bottle of beer during his (2.15pm) show and put a little effort into entertaining the audience (who didn’t get above a muted giggle at any point of the show). Disappointing.

The Red Richardson Experience is on at Gilded Balloon at the Counting House until August 29
https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on#q=%22The%20Red%20Richardson%20Experience%22

NewsRevue 2016

By Ron Bingham

It’s been another quiet year on the newsfront, hasn’t it? Ahem…

NewsRevue is one of those regular dependable shows that gets full houses every year (Its been a fixture since 1979!) This year it started with a patriotic showstopper about the upcoming US election and ended with a all-star Brexit extravaganza (“I’m So Brexited”). In between there were songs and sketches about the Labour Party (infighting), Conservative Party (infighting), Liberal Democrats (apparently they still exist) and the SNP (all hail Nicola Sturgeon). There were extra segments on the England Football Team’s performance in the Euro’s (justifiable usage of the C word), same sex marriage, more on the US election and Brexit, a rather dodgy sketch about the Labour Party’s love of their Jewish constituents, a soliloquy from the Queen and a lot of little jokelets. It was probably only politeness (and the fact that he is performing at the Fringe) that made them leave 92 year old Nicholas Parsons off the list of possible additions to this roll-call.

Performers this year are Neil Cameron, Steven Dalziel, Rachael Hilton, Jacob Jackson and Faye Reeves, who were all very talented at song and dance as well as getting laughs. Songs included a farewell from David Cameron, a recruitment song for ISIS (to the tune of YMCA)and a lovely mid-show song about all the celebrities we have lost (so far) this year. There was also a song about the Olympic Games which I expect will need to be updated as the Fringe progresses and the Games start and finish.

There were a couple of sound problems and pauses between sketches ably filled by the on stage pianist, musical director Patrick Rufey, but for an opening night, NewsRevue was otherwise impressively tight. The performers did an excellent job with their musical numbers, dances, accents and routines and the (almost) full house had a ball, showing their appreciation loudly throughout. It would be interesting to compare the show at the start and the show at the end of the festival, as I think that events (political and Olympic) may change very rapidly in the next few weeks.

NewRevue 2016 is on at the Pleasance Courtyard until August 29
https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on#q=%22NewsRevue%202016%22

Yaseen Kader – Smile

By Ron Bingham

Yaseen is a personable young comedian who tells us his tale of teenage depression and therapy. He admits to suffering from no major traumas in his life, but did have some confused thoughts about an actor (Cole Sprouse) on a Disney TV show that seems to have had an unusually profound affect on him during his formative years .

Yaseen spent most of his first year at uni in bed, unable to face the world or exams, which eventually led to therapy. He recommended we all try Cognitive Behaviour Therapy but avoid Freudian psychoanalysis, so hey, with this show, you get some useful advice along with the comedy. After eventually completing his degree, he took us on a journey to New York and some of his adventures there (via Tinder), visiting all the major tourist sites and taking in movies with amusingly annoying American ladies.

The stories were well written, well told and entertaining. The small audience was well rewarded with a funny, confident, well structured and brisk show about the lighter side of depression and anxiety. The room was tiny so it may be worth buying a ticket in advance, rather than chancing the possibility of a seat, as word will soon spread about the high quality of this neat lunchtime show.

Smile is on at Gilded Balloon at the Counting House until August 28
https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on#q=%22Yaseen%20Kader%3A%20Smile%22

Torum Heng – Keep Out of My Box (and Other Useful Advice)

By Ron Bingham

This one-woman play is set in the box office of a theatre and stars Torum Heng as Naomi, a young lady who has called a meeting to try to give advice to the even younger ladies who are heading down the wrong (sexually hazardous) path in their relationships. She starts the meeting with vegemite sandwiches and introduces us to each of the women who are prepared to give us their own experiences of love gone wrong, as examples not to follow.

Each character tells their story and sings a song (all original, very tunefully sung a capella) about their situation. One girl had a heartbreak she cannot get over, another has a reputation she is unable to get rid of, a third has an obsession with a certain hair colour (anyone with red hair should see this show just to glory in the song Torum sings at this point), while the last girl is unashamed and unabashed about everything. There is a wonderful climax to the show, plus a little post-climax entertainment.

Well written, acted and sung stories of the problems girls face growing up in a small town, performed by a vibrant and confident young lady. The vegemite sandwiches were also yummy.

– P.S. I would recommend grabbing a seat in the centre section of the audience, as the set (a wooden theatre box) restricts the view on the sides.

Keep Out of My Box (and Other Useful Advice) is on at Gilded Balloon Teviot until August 29
https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on#q=Torum%20Heng%20

Andrew Ryan – Ruined

By Ron Bingham

Andrew is from Cork. He suffers from gluten intolerance. He isn’t happy about it. This is his tale.

For the last 18 months or so Andrew has been suffering from a number of annoying debilities, which he lovingly describes to the audience in detail. Eventually he goes to his doctor who suggests that he may be gluten intolerant but, as the tests will take a while to confirm this, maybe he should stop eating certain foods and see whether this clears up his symptoms. He is fine with the list until the doctor mentions Guinness. Cue Irish patriotic horror. We’re then treated to a description of the taste and texture of the food available in the gluten-free aisle of supermarkets.

Andrew then takes us back in time to question whether his troublemaking at school may have been due to food allergies or just boyish high spirits. He has many tales of high school highjinx, his record includes being caught on the roof during class and a failed attempt to organise a little party for his fellow classmates during a trip to France. Before Andrew’s diagnosis he also tried self-help books, and he gives an excellent summation of the dubious qualities of this literary genre. Finally, there is a touching tale about helping to find a missing child in Edinburgh, which warmly wraps up the show.

A beautifully told and well-structured hour of engaging stories. Andrew is a very fast talker and has a very confident manner. The audience laughed heartily and were very appreciative at the end. Highly recommended.

Ruined is on at Assembly George Square Studios until August 28
https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on#q=Andrew%20Ryan%20-%20Ruined

Randy Writes A Novel

By Ron Bingham

Our favourite foul mouthed purple puppet is back. He’s dumped his partner Sammy J and is at the festival with a late night show, reading us excerpts from his new novel, ‘Walking to Skye’.

Well, that was the plan. Randy is a bit nervous about exposing his work to the unflinching gaze of a hostile audience, so we instead get an hour of distractions, musings, stories and philosophy from Randy. There are tales of alcohol and the police, a story about the people you meet when trying to buy a bookcase on Gumtree, unusual deaths, the lives and literary work of Ernest Hemingway and Harper Lee, a little Buddhism and the path to enlightenment and meat versus vegan.

Randy is an excellent visual performer despite his limitations (being anchored to a box doesn’t make use of the entire stage and it’s hard to make eye contact with punters when your eyes aren’t real!). His storytelling skills and joke craft are excellent, but I could feel the audience were a little confused by some of the more philosophical sections of the show (especially the meat industry facts/figures). I do feel that Randy is being a bit sneaky here, as these thoughtful sections of the show will probably have more long term resonance in the minds of the audience than the hilarious comedy routines. At the end, the laughter and rapturous applause showed how much they enjoyed the show.

So if you’re up to a late night hour of stand-up philosophy with filthy jokes or you just want to see a very funny show about books and writing, I can definitely recommend Randy.

Randy Writes A Novel is on at Underbelly Potterrow until August 29
https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on#q=%22Randy%20Writes%20a%20Novel%22