Fringe Comedy Reviews: Out on the Edge
Most comedians pick at their scabs, but Australian comic John Robertson [★★★★☆] really likes to get under the skin. His new show Let’s Redecorate focuses on a string of unexpected suicides in his life, the most recent one being that of the friend who encouraged him to become a stand-up in the first place. He assures us it's what she would have wanted, so not exploitative then. Only he exploits his memories mercilessly with close-to-the-bone-marrow quips aimed at drawing laughs then a rictus – or vice versa.
Uncomfortable? Very – but Robertson knows full well how awful such emotional profiteering can be and he continuously doubles back to examine the roadkill he's just ploughed into. The joyful mime he delivers, like a living flip book, to depict the sex he's won from women by crying about his dad's death sums up the complexity of how people simultaneously suffer from and indulge in grief.
Dredging up this stuff does feel somehow sadistic at times but Robertson is smart enough to get away with it. Though he'll linger with predatory silence after every tasteless joke, he does have a sense of mercy, deploying silly gags (an Australian knock-knock joke) or impersonations (Oscar Wilde as a vet) to alleviate the intensity. It's funny, freaky, feelbad stuff – a show that says if you want to be let off the hook, just fess up to the inner monster you really are inside.
The sketch troupe Gein’s Family Giftshop [★★☆☆☆] also dabble in the dark side – anything that stains basically. So blood, poop, beer and outrageous mental images. There’s stuff about matricide, child abuse, serial killers and demonic rape, as the quartet (three on stage, one off) delight in anything beyond the pale. The sketches are short, sharp and well-edited but since all of them are painted using the same part of the palette – greys, browns, maroons – they do tend to become quite predictable quite quickly. Gein’s has been endorsed by the likes of The League Of Gentlemen and the flattery hangs heavy. They are painfully self-conscious tonight and unfortunately seem to have regressed a little into something more like a stereotypical student troupe.
In Cahoots: Two White Men [★★★☆☆] stars a young pair of sketchmongers. These 'two white guys' are young, gifted and, despite that title of the show, not white. Well one is, the other isn't, but they both like playing with and against racial types and stereotypes. So we get a Middle Eastern terrorist, a Bollywood TV host, a drunken Essex boy and two Nigerian princes – all of them turned inside out in a well-judged set of propless, quick-fire sketches. Each one is nicely detailed, with the best one exposing the ironic truth behind internet phishing scams. Paul G Raymond and Luke Manning do look a bit like weedy sixth formers, but both are talented actors, skipping between accents with ease to create characters that are often surprisingly subtle. A mad finale involving their creations being shuffled into each other’s sketches suggests an interestingly offbeat direction to come.
John Robertson: Let's Redecorate!, The Stand VI, until 30 Aug (various dates), 2:50pm, £7-10
Gein's Family Giftshop: Volume 2, Pleasance Courtyard, until 30 Aug (various dates), 10:45pm, £6-9.50
In Cahoots: Two White Guys, Pleasance Courtyard, until 31 Aug, 7:15pm, £8.50-10.50