Madeleine Culp: Fark

As far as intros go, this is a good one. Weird, funny, mish-mashy, and theatre-like, the scene is set for Madeleine Culp’s ditz into the clouds. Her character is like the worst fairy in Fairy School; gentle, but not exactly graceful, a little bit naive in that all-accepting, toddler kind of manner, and totally unique in the way that only a fairy can be. All this belies a confident, hugely competent performer who is in total control.

The show is based around excerpts from Fark, a book which teaches people to ‘do art’. Culp’s interpretations of the extracts often seem not to have much to do with what was read out, but where is the fun in that eh? Who needs things to make sense when you’ve got a ‘song’ about fancy dress?

Gently poking fun at serious ‘art people’, Culp’s half-hour show is witty and weird. The bits don’t necessarily link up, but they’re funny, and it’s impossible not to love her endearing persona. There are a few glitchy tech moments, and the show seemed to go over much of the audiences’ heads. It’s either your thing, or it’s not, but Culp’s character and style is dead on; on another day this might have been perfect.