Louise Reay @ The Stand
Documentary-maker and comedian Louise Reay takes a risk with an immersive hour of authoritarianism
The authoritarian Chinese government is the focus of this immersive comedy, with the audience intended to experience the show as one might do in a repressive regime: sinister masked enforcers guard the stage, censoring certain words and subject matter, and throwing members of the audience into ‘jail’ in response to their participation. Reay’s performance largely revolves around sketches imagining what the BBC might look like under these conditions.
Visuals and audio are employed well, with one of the strongest elements of the show a filmed conversation between documentary-maker Reay and an actor representing Chinese activist Ai Weiwei, of which snippets are shown throughout the hour. Reay’s sketches are daring and innovative in subject matter and tone – one of the better routines sees her reenact a famous EastEnders scene entirely in Mandarin, in which she is fluent – but the risk does not always pay off with an already tense audience.
Where the comedy falls flat at its surface level, it exposes a slightly messy narrative where Reay’s important points risk being lost. And the point being made here is an important one, as is a moving subtext that only becomes fully clear at the show’s conclusion. Reay deserves credit for her sensitive and creative tackling of difficult themes, but they might ultimately be better served by a tighter narrative and sharper sketches which do justice to the noble subject matter.
Louise Reay: Hard Mode, The Stand Comedy Club 4 (28 York Place), until 27 Aug (not 14), 5.55pm, £7-8