Stage: Trying to put on a show

Kiki & Herb Are Trying
with Justin Vivian Bond, Kenny Mellman
Soho Theatre Walthamstow • 3-5.Jul.25 ★★★★

New York legends Justin Vivian Bond and Kenny Mellman bring their alter-egos back to the London stage for the first time since 2007, taking the glorious new stage at Soho Theatre Walthamstow. Although after all these years we begin to wonder if Kiki and Herb will make it to the end of the show. These characters have been honed to perfection, so the way this plays out is hilarious. They may be a pastiche of cabaret double-act, but they're also gifted musicians, creating funny and compelling moments as they recount outrageously overwrought tales from their past and perform songs and medleys that range from darkly emotive to belting standards.

Kiki has clearly had a few drinks before taking the stage, and continues to refill her glass, and also Herb's, throughout the show, fuelling their impassioned performances while at the same time blurring everything around the edges. "We'll try and put on a show," Kiki says confidently, ever the trooper. She also slurs her way through ill-remembered lyrics and becomes sidetracked when she spots either a cute man or an ex in the audience. And Herb gets more expressive in his adoration for Kiki. So there isn't a dull moment as they keep the audience in the palm of their hands, largely because it's clear that pretty much anything might happen.

Musical numbers traverse a wide range of styles and eras, as tunes to bleed into each other with hugely expressive emotions as the dusty-voiced Kiki is accompanied by Herb on the piano. And he chimes in for animated vocal duets. Medleys include pop hit shout-outs from Prince's When Doves Cry to Chappell Roan's Pink Pony Club. Seasons of Love from Rent drifts into Taylor Swift's Anti-Hero. Joy Division's Love Will Tear Us Apart morphs into New Order's Temptation. Their brassy rendition of Sex Bomb includes a wild dance break. And there are full-bodied performances of songs like Cherish, The Windmills of My Mind and A Lover Spurned, climaxing with an absolutely blistering Total Eclipse of the Heart.

The show is peppered with random comedy riffs that are impeccably improvised. Among Kiki's rambling memories are stories about her children and grandchild, plus a recollection of the 1950s fascism that was fuelled by Roy Cohn, whose acolyte is now bringing it back. There's also a jaw-dropping Sylvia Plath joke. Through all of this, it's wonderfully clear that they're just glad to be on stage after all these decades. "We're still alive," Kiki proclaims, as if she's more than a little surprised. Yes, Kiki and Herb have always been past their prime, and they are still utterly fabulous.

For more, KIKI & HERB >

photos by Eric McNatt & Richard Termine • 3.Jul.25

Stage: We're all perfectly safe

Jonah Non Grata
written and performed by Simon Kane
Soho Theatre, London • 21.Jun.25 ★★★★

It's been nearly a decade since Simon Kane last performed his show Jonah Non Grata, but be brought it to Soho Theatre for one night on midsummer as a preview before its run at this year's Edinburgh Fringe. There's a reason why this show has such a following: it's a near-perfect display of surrealist comedy, brain-bending and utterly hilarious in ways that feel downright biblical.

That's of course intentional, as the title suggests, as does a scattering of fish on the floor of the theatre. The topic here is extremism, but it is presented in such an original way that it sneaks up on us, kind of like Kane first appears from inside a shopping bag then continues to produce random props from his pockets. His presentation has a disarming puppy-dog charm to it, so we hang on his every earnest word, even when he begins to evoke the tone of British folk horror movies with his religious pronouncements. This includes leading the audience in the singing of the hymn O Spanky Axe.

There's a lot of audience interaction along the way, which gives the show an improvisational kick and adds to Kane's conversational tone. One audience member reads out passages from a choose-your-own-adventure novel, as Kane urges all of us to be unanimous in our decisions about what to do next. Or at least to try. Yes, this is an exploration of the choices people make, changing destinies and more in the process. And while there seems to be some sort of linear path to the narrative, the absurdity of it all keeps us on our toes.

Kane's clownish physicality makes superbly inventive use of old and new technology. He continually tries to put on a blindfold, but can't bear it. He draws X's on pieces of paper and encourages us to see something else. And he continually alludes to an outside force that is pushing him. This leads to a segment in which he mimes travelling on a plane before being swallowed by a whale. All of this is very funny, simply because Kane plays it with such conviction. It's a skilful performance that brings out hauntingly deep, dark ideas about humanity in unimaginably amusing style.

For info: LONDON CLOWN FESTIVAL > 

21.Jun.25

Stage: Send in the clowns

London Clown Festival 2025
hosts Dan Lees and Neil Frost, aka The Establishment
with Sarah Woolfenden, Tom Penn, Julie Nesher, Josh Glanc, Lil Wenker, Rob Duncan, Paulina Lenoir, Patricia Langa
Soho Theatre, Jackson's Lane and other venues • 16.Jun-4.Jul.25 ★★★

This year's London Clown Festival, an annual event that previews shows that will be playing the Edinburgh Fringe, kicked off with a rather uneven two-hour cabaret that unfolded in typically riotous style at Soho Theatre's Upstairs space. The evening was hosted by the Establishment (Dan Lees and Neil Frost), adept goofballs who continually ask the audience if we think the show has started yet. Their rolling improv is properly nutty, as they decide on songs to sing, impersonations to perform, news headlines to read, games to play and audience members to play with.

The first act is Sarah Woolfenden, painted and dressed in white as she surreally wanders around the stage urging the audience to embrace the clown within. She then takes her place in the house band, alongside Lees, Tom Penn and Julie Nesher. Their music has a wonderfully bouncy rhythm to it, and Sarah provides all manner of noises, whistles and horns. They accompany most of the acts that follow, including Josh Glanc, who charges through his hilariously awkward material, singing a series of very similar songs while taking on audience members who challenge him. This makes his set feel somewhat tense, as if it is spiralling out of control, but his scrappy charm keeps us on his side.

Up next is the baddest man in Texas (Lil Wenker), a strutting Wild West drag king with a Groucho moustache and cigar, plus spoons on their ankles. With a flirtatious and very silly attitude, he uses his growly voice to get audience members to repeat key phrases that then play out in an epic story. It's utterly ridiculous, and very funny. And now it's Rob Duncan, who triumphantly introduces himself as having been crowned Printer of the Year, then launches into an absurd demonstration of performance printing. This involves two portable printers that spew out pages that feed into his punchlines, just like magic! Indeed, he even prints a rabbit from his hat.

Emerging on his own, the band's bassist Penn takes the stage dressed as a chef wearing a set of red curtains (complete with the rod), singing and dancing, before his manager-wife Nesher emerges perched on his back to take over the show. Their goofy act is packed with riotous sight gags as they dive into one random joke after another. 

And finally we have Conchita and Lola, or Conchola, freaky flamenco-style black widows played by Paulina Lenoir and Patricia Langa. They speak in eerie unison, perhaps the least improvisational act of the night, as they recount the epic saga of their witchy lives and deaths. Their hyper-dramatic performance is hugely amusing, as they stare down the audience and perform their nutty choreography.

All of these acts and many more are performing in the festival. For info, see LONDON CLOWN FESTIVAL >

See also: notes from the 2024 CABARET > 

Soho Theatre, 16.Jun.25

Stage: In a really good place

Glamrou: Drag Mother
with Amrou Al-Kadhi
Soho Theatre, London •  20-25.Jan.25 ★★★★

More performance art than a stand-up drag show, this one-hour piece comes directly from Amrou Al-Kadhi's soul, revealing a perceptive, funny and strongly engaging way of looking at the world. It's framed as a battle between Amrou and his sardonic Iraqi mother, who continually takes over the show and speaks to the audience to debunk Amrou's wildly imaginative stories about his life. So the show has a lot to say about the immigrant experience, how it feels to both be queer and to have a queer son, and the strength that comes from getting into drag and putting on a show.

Oozing glittery star power, Glamrou takes the stage with earnest showbiz gratitude, addressing the small Soho Theatre audience as "Wembley" and launching into a moody rendition of Bad Romance, accompanied by two musicians. Glamrou's full-diva attitude is hilarious as she speaks about her boyhood in Baghdad during the British invasion, growing up with an Islamist mother. Then mother takes over, telling the true story of Amrou's wealthy upbringing in Knightsbridge. She also points out the irony that in a Muslim family, Amrou is a man who can do whatever he wants, but he chooses to dress as a woman.

Intriguingly, elements of Amrou and his mother bleed into each other, discovering deeper connections and raising some surprisingly provocative issues. Amrou speaks about his big break as an actor in Spielberg's Munich (2005), then being typecast as a terrorist. This is echoed on a big screen as movie clips and childhood photos are projected alongside some fascinating memorabilia that explores his created backstory, as he felt pushed by teachers to live up to expectations. This intimately address nuanced issues connected to his ethnicity, religion and sexuality.

The juxtaposition of Amrou's fantasist storytelling with his mother's earthier honesty is often unnervingly clever, creating a show that's smart and very silly, but never frivolous. Even a series of musical numbers are performed with shades of personality and attitude, creating moods and feelings the audience doesn't expect. As Amrou continually says, "At 34, I'm in a really good place," but he always feels the flames around him. Indeed, his complex inner life sits alongside both struggles and triumphs. And of course this is something all of us can identify with.

For more, GLAMROU >

21.Jan.25

Stage: This is the greatest show

Ball & Boe
For Fourteen Nights Only
director Tom Parry
with Adam Riches, John Kearns
Soho Theatre, London • 10.Dec.24-4.Jan.25 ★★★★

Pretty much the perfect fringe show, this pastiche comedy has a freewheeling sense of carefully controlled chaos that is thoroughly winning, largely because it's also hilarious. Adam Riches and John Kearns are veteran comics, and yet here they are playing Michael Ball and Alfie Boe, as if they are rehearsing for their next big tour together. In between a number of big-energy songs, they play games with each other and the audience, read fan mail and clash egos. And one of them loathes Michael Bublé. 

Strictly speaking, Riches and Kearns are not singers, which is a large part of the joke, but they're not deliberately bad either, making up for any lack of talent with sheer gusto. They also don't really bother to do impersonations, and the show doesn't hinge on having prior knowledge about Ball and Boe. While fans will no doubt catch more references, the patter offers the context needed to make the gags land. Meanwhile, both performers create proper characters on stage, with Riches' blithely louche and insensitive Ball as the perfect foil for Kearns' intentional and more openly emotive Boe.

All of this is held together by a vague plot that circles around broad-appeal entertainers who sing cover versions so they can keep everyone happy. Ball is fine with this, as it feeds his desire to be loved, while Boe would really like to sing an original song for a change. But this might jeopardise the brand sponsorship deal Ball has set up. These jokes are very funny, and they're also knowing criticisms of an industry that uses and discards performers without a thought. And the songs are fabulous.

So there's rather a lot more going on here than just watching, as they describe themselves, "naughty little schoolboys in their 50s". While we laugh at the general silliness that runs all the way through the show, and we sigh at some of the more moving aspects to this friendship, there are also things that provoke serious thought. This is a sparky and sharply well-assembled one-hour show, expertly played by two actors who work so well together that the audience is likely to become die-hard groupies.

For details, SOHO THEATRE >

photo by Matt Stronge • 12.Dec.24

Stage: Get to the punchline

Jack Tucker: Comedy Standup Hour
with Zach Zucker, Dylan Woodley
direction & sound Jonny Woolley
Soho Theatre, London • 15-27.Jul.24 ★★★★★

Fans of Stamptown host Jack Tucker will love the chance to see a full hour (or most likely more) of him on his own in this almost panic-strikingly hilarious show. As played by Zach Zucker, Jack is an exploding bundle of nervous energy who struggles against all manner of distractions as he tells random jokes before laboriously arriving at a surreal or even downright stupid punchline. But we may never get to the end of a joke, and he certainly won't finish within his allotted hour. There isn't a moment of this show that doesn't feel like it's spiralling far out of control. It's a work of genius.

While referencing his New York roots, Jack makes riotously timely comments about America's politics, Britain's recent election and England's performance in the Euro 2024 final, plus some wicked Brexit references. But mainly he tries to tell extended standup-style jokes about everyday things like airplanes, smartphones and bees. And he's continually interrupted by his own stream-of-consciousness as well as the ongoing antics of roller-skating opening act Dylan Woodley. On press night, a trumpeter mercilessly stole the show every time he appeared. Jack's interaction with the audience is a barrage of lightning-quick throwaway gags that continually catch us by surprise. And every malapropism is so impeccably targeted that we quickly realise that chaos is clearly the entire point of the show.

Hugely likeable even when playing an idiot like Jack, Zucker is pathologically talented comic who expertly combines his razor-sharp timing with clowning physicality. He interacts with the crashing sounds and shifting lights with gleeful precision. And yet everything feels improvised, as if an under-rehearsed show is being pulled apart at the seams. Obviously, this can't happen by accident, and even when it feels like it has perhaps genuinely gone off the rails, he still manages to be hilarious. While continually checking his notes, the pace of his gags is so fast that it's not possible to keep up, so the laughs pile up like a car crash on a motorway at rush hour. "It's a hurricane up here," Jack shouts. "Or maybe a him-icane!"

As with Stamptown, the stage is a scene of total carnage by the end of the show, while the increasingly disheveled Jack is covered in confetti and sweat (and other things). Most impressive is how Zucker maintains Jack's relentless awkwardness, simulating failure and pandemonium while delivering one expertly aimed zinger after another. And there's a vulnerability even to his obvious lies that makes us want to give him a hug. Not a single thing has gone the way he planned it, and yet the mayhem comes together perfectly. Yet another triumph.

For info, SOHO THEATRE > • STAMPTOWN >

photos by Dylan Woodley & David Monteith-Hodge • 16.Jul.24

Stage: Just clowning around

London Clown Festival
host Riss Obolensky
with Piotr Sikora, Paula Valluerca, Nancy Trotter Landry, Neil Frost, Frankie Thompson
band Sarah Woolfenden, Dan Lees, Tom Penn, Julie Nesher
Soho Theatre, Jackson's Lane and other venues
8-25.Jul.24 ★★★★

London Clown Festival brings three weeks of riotous physical comedy to venues across the capital ahead of the Edinburgh Fringe, and it kicked off with a lively two-hour cabaret featuring a number of notable acts playfully interacting with the audience in the upstairs studio space at Soho Theatre. The results were a bit uneven, as these kinds of programmes usually are, but the general atmosphere was hilarious, especially as the performers unapologetically went for it. And being press night, this included some pointed interactions with critics in attendance.

Obolensky

The energetic host for the evening is Michael (Obolensky), an Aussie drag king who proudly notes that his stand-up comes from 1989 and wears a tie emblazoned with the word "creep". He introduces the excellent four-piece live band for the show, then launches into a bit involving an HR complaint line, helping the audience sort out their workplace gripes through improvised song in various genres. It's very, very silly, and continues in between the acts throughout the night. The first performer is the band's trumpeter Sarah Woolfenden, who does amusingly absurd new age-style beat poetry to set the mood: "We know not what will happen".

Furiozo

Then it's the fabulous tough guy Furiozo (Sikora), who wordlessly mimes a riotous crime caper with the help of a few audience members. This includes a robbery, elaborate chase and jailhouse escape, all of which play out in very funny ways thanks to Furiozo's warm-hearted undercurrents. (Furiozo performed a variation of this routine in January at Stamptown.) He's followed by another of my favourites of the night, Madame Señorita (Valluerca), who strides out with diva-like confidence and Celine Dione-style delusion to sing a sultry song in Spanish that's punctuated by conversations with audience members she thinks she recognises. The deadpan delivery, visual sight gags and soapy side stories she creates are hilarious.

Woolfenden, Suki Tawdry, Frost

The next two acts are downright surreal, more slapstick performance art than comedy. Suki Tawdry (Trotter Landry) shyly takes the spotlight and enters into all-out war with the microphone stand while the band fills in the gaps. Then she struggles with a stack of papers before mumbling a poem and fleeing the stage. Neil Frost bounds out to perform a Shakespeare tribute, battling a wig and cape that simply won't stay on as he prances and poses around the stage to the music, pausing to shout "Shakespeare!" and taking audience requests, with similarly messy results.

Madame Señorita, Thompson

And finally there's the hugely talented Frankie Thompson, who performs a fiendishly witty CCTV camera romance to Every Breath You Take, then launches into an uncanny verbatim performance to spoken word recordings of people saying "horrible things". This includes recounting a meeting with Margaret Thatcher, baking the perfect scone and more vile Thatcher musings. Strikingly physical and unnervingly in synch, she ends the show on a very strong note indeed.

For details, LONDON CLOWN FESTIVAL >

Soho Theatre, 8.Jul.24

Stage: A knight to remember

Jazz Emu: Knight Fever
with Archie Henderson, Sofia Grant (keys), Nicky Green (synths), Angie Prasanti (bass), Joel Phillips (drums)
Soho Theatre, London • 3-22.Jun.24 ★★★★
Also at the Pleasance, Edinburgh Fringe in Aug and touring the UK in Feb-Mar 2025

With a wildly imaginative narrative, this show has an entertaining ramshackle vibe that almost allows us to forget that these are extremely skilled musicians and comics putting on a silly show. Cleverly framed around an epic quest, it's a performance that keeps us laughing with subtle gags, witty music and energetic physicality. So while Jazz Emu is essentially a clown, it's very difficult not to root for him.

We're watching the final rehearsal for the Royal Variety Show for Jazz and his band The Cosmique Perfectión, who are following Kelly Clarkson in the lineup. But for Jazz, the key question is who the King will give a knighthood to at the end of the night. And every effort he makes to gain attention seems to push him even further away from this ultimate honour. It also begins to feel doubtful that he can prove that other people love him as much as he loves himself.

As played by Archie Henderson, Jazz is a charmer with absolutely no awareness of himself or the world around him. How else would he get pulled into such an obvious fishing/malware scam? Or why else would he hire a clearly shifty publicist to help him secure the knighthood? With his elastic voice, he's also a gifted comic and singer who plays a range of instruments as he and the band perform his instant classic tunes, including the email "opera" My Brothe, the hilariously transgressive Eggerson Keaveney and the funky, insanely catchy Still Waiting. All of these have already become iconic on YouTube.

The humour is often surreal, finding laughs in the most unexpected places, from the frequent jabs at Kelly Clarkson to a cobra drinking lemonade. He recounts wonderfully ridiculous stories that spiral in wildly absurd directions, such as his brief experience of afterlife when he hit his head in a swimming pool. And his song about going back to the good old days is as stupid as it sounds, but also carries a wickedly sharp point.

This is a wonderfully slick show, with great live music accompanied by terrific video-screens that both add to the songs and push the narrative along. Each bandmate emerges with his or her own personality and skill, while Jazz has a lot of fun playing off the audience, many of whom are clearly already loyal fans. And seeing this show is a sure-fire way to become one yourself.

For information, JAZZ EMU >

photos by Dylan Woodley & David Monteith-Hodge • 6.Jun.24

Stage: Killer punchlines and guitar riffs

Caveman in a Spaceship
Dave Hill
Soho Theatre • 15-18.May.24 ★★★★

American comic and musician Dave Hill has built a following with his appearances on a range of TV shows and in various bands, one of which supported Tenacious D on a recent tour. Now he is taking this solo piece on the road. Hill's middle-aged personal and rapid-fire performance are almost literally breathtaking, barely allowing the audience to pause between the constant barrage of hilarious punchlines, throwaway gags and musical riffs. His deferential delivery is hugely engaging, as he bares his soul to the audience while also striking several painfully cool poses.

This performance begins with a blast of chaotic energy, as he charges the stage on a BMX bike in a jumpsuit accompanied by a strobe light, fireworks and foam machine, twirling nunchucks and playing fearsome chords on his guitar while singing the title song, which speaks about keeping one foot in the past and the other in the future. "I nailed it," he sighs breathlessly at the end, and launches straight into a stream of consciousness that includes playing audience requests, running through an extended comedy sketch about Poundland and offering specific pick-up lines for Londoners to use. All of this is delivered with a surreal grin, thanking the audience for every laugh.

At one point he's joined by a couple of backup musicians who ably keep up with him even though he continually asks them to hold back. Throughout, Hill creates a surprisingly smooth vibe that's both groovy and very silly. Standout moments include a wildly paraphrased retelling of the gospel story of the loaves and fishes, which climaxes in a song about getting into a fight with his girlfriend's sister's annoying boyfriend. Every moment of this feels improvised, thanks to Hill's flailing, slightly out-of-control persona, but it's clearly very carefully put together, from the nutty flourishes to the expert guitar playing that punctuates everything.

When this brisk hour is up, the audience simply doesn't want it to end. Like all the best Fringe shows, this one leaves us longing for more. Judging by the audience's reaction, it's obvious that Hill has well and truly conquered London, and now we want to see whatever he does next. The question is whether we'll be able to keep up with him.

For more, DAVE HILL >

16.May.24

Stage: Blissfully out of control

Stamptown
host Zach Zucker
with Natalie Palamides, Martin Urbano, Kemah Bob, Furiozo, Marshall Arkley, Cleopantha, Rowen K, Steffen Hanes, Erin Farrington, Dylan Woodley
sound Jonny Woolley • lighting Lily Woodford-Lewis
Soho Theatre, London • 17-27.Jan.24 ★★★★★

Marshall Arkley

Even before this show starts, boisterous chaos has already filled the theatre. Then master of ceremonies Jack Tucker (aka Zach Zucker) takes the mic and everything spirals even more blissfully out of control. This is a remarkable collision of standup, burlesque and clownery, unfolding with an expert sense of improvisational energy that often seems to catch the performers themselves off guard. It's so relentlessly entertaining and unpredictable, that audience members will want to come back and see what might happen next time.

At the centre of a wildly full-on variety show, the charming Zucker skilfully holds things together, teetering on the edge of anarchy. His corny jokes elicit applause and groans as he peppers us with a continuous series of snappy visual and verbal gags. When he can, he introduces the next act. The show includes three burlesque numbers, with Cleopantha sparking sassy attitude in a eye-popping traditional routine, Rowen K displaying impressive acrobatic handstands and muscle man Marshall Arkley adding whip-cracking, fire-breathing antics along with, well, it needs to be seen to be believed.

Furiozo

Stage manager Erin offers trigger warnings for the edgier elements in the show, but arrives far too late. The beefy Furiozo inventively mimes an entire crime saga with game assistance from an audience member. Kemah Bob delivers a surreally hilarious standup set about the innate absurdity of seasalt. A vampire (Hanes) stalks the show waiting for his chance to add something spooky. And comic Martin Urbano plays a critic who reads from his appalling notes throughout the show. 

There's a lot more going on, and nothing that happens seems to go quite as planned. But because it's so genuinely amusing, the audience can't help but get swept into the swirling energy. Each of these performers, including the people running the sound and lighting, is a the very best at what they do. Their timing, quick thinking and ability to riff off each other is flat-out genius, blending smart punchlines with sublimely silly buffoonery. And because the show plays out with such a gleefully freeform structure, it will always be fresh and new, unexpected and jaw-dropping. And definitely not for the faint of heart.

For information, STAMPTOWN >

photos are from previous productions • 18.Jan.24

Stage: Charmingly transgressive

Vertigo
Connor Burns
Soho Theatre, London • 16-18.Nov.23
UK tour 6.Oct.23-23.Mar.24 ★★★★

Scottish stand-up Connor Burns takes his acclaimed Fringe show on the road, travelling to pretty much every corner of Great Britain (plus a stop in New York), ending up back home in Glasgow in March. His offhanded style of delivery and deliberately edgy material make him thoroughly engaging, especially as he continually apologises for each transgressive gag. Then he says something even more outrageous, which leaves us laughing conspiratorially.

Most of all, Burns is lightning fast, quickly picking up on what's happening in the theatre, and weaving razor-sharp punchlines into each throwaway comment. He delights in skating close to the edge of controversial subjects, mischievously riffing on things like female empowerment, gender identity and Oscar Pistorius, and he miraculously manages to do this without ever losing the audience. He has a gift for accents, and joyfully lampoons a wide range of people, starting with his own Scottish brogue before mercilessly taking on Australia.

What makes this so engaging is that he delivers every jab with expert timing, as if he's having a private chat with us, confiding his politically incorrect opinions, even though we know that he's joking (and he reminds us just to be sure). His jaggedly hilarious comments about shifting genertional attitudes, as a Millennial looking at Baby Boomers and Gen Z, are wonderfully observed to add unexpected depth to the material. And through all of this, his cheeky, knowing smile is utterly charming, undercutting our ability to be offended by even his rudest material. This is a rare gift, so we can only hope that Burns never gives into pressure to tone things down.

For information, visit CONNOR BURNS >

photos by Melody Joy • 18.Nov.23

Stage: Expertly controlled chaos

 

BriTANicK
by Brian McElhaney, Nick Kocher
dir Alex Edelman
prd Zach Zucker, Allegra Rosenberg
Soho Theatre, London • 27.Feb-4.Mar.23

In one blissfully silly hour, gifted writers and performers Brian McElhaney and Nick Kocher take the audience on a hilarious trip into their own obsessions. Their humour is surreal and ridiculous, with meta gags and punchlines that circle around to get funnier each time they reappear. As teens in Atlanta, the duo came up with the name BriTANicK (rhymes with Titanic), which they acknowledge is a mess. Over the last two decades, they have won awards for their show and an Emmy nomination as writers on Saturday Night Live.

A series of contained sketches that feature overlapping themes and repeating jokes, this show builds momentum and energy until it reaches a wonderfully out-of-control crescendo. The duo opens with a quietly witty scene that establishes their personalities, with the thoughtful Brian trying to read a book while the mischievous Nick, playing an unseen ghost, pesters him. Subsequent sketches take them to Old England, where their duel is interrupted by an over-friendly horse, and the Wild West, where they play every role in a crowded saloon.

Along the way, there are many more outrageously inventive moments set, for example, in a memory loss clinic, plus encounters with their personal dreams and nightmares. And they gleefully push boundaries of political correctness. The most insistent running joke is that Nick has taken a vow of celibacy prior to his wedding, which has been delayed by the pandemic. This leaves him desperate for any form of intimacy, either from Brian or frankly anyone in the audience. His amorous yearnings escalate to a frankly brilliant explosion of trousers-around-the-ankles slapstick.

While all of this spirals with a sense of wildly chaotic improvisation, it's impressive how Brian and Nick keep their finely tuned choreography so fresh and even dangerous. After decades working together, the camaraderie between them is hugely engaging, especially when things get physical. Their childlike sense of imagination is infectious, as they play with invisible props and settings in ways that are both goofy and fiendishly clever. And because their connection is so strong, the deeper ideas add a layer of resonance that catches us by surprise, even as we never stop laughing.

For information, SOHO THEATRE >

photos by Sela Shiloni and Stamptown • 27.Feb.23