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Fringe 2008 Reviews (3)
Sword
of Maximum Damage
Adam Riches
Underbelly
*
Despite this writer's previous plaudits this show is really not worth
the hype. Six performers act out a gaming 'duel' between the reigning
champion and challenging newcomer in a fantasy board game tournament.
They bring with them their 'serfs' and roll dice to achieve their ends
in the game. This is overseen by a referee, the K-otician, who judges
their battles. Points are deducted for honour and, at one point, for
encouraging the referee to be racist.
Although the irony and mock seriousness of this piece is meant to
be funny, it becomes painful to watch. Whilst all the performers commit
wholly to their characters, the essential concept of this play is one
that will appeal to a very limited audience. If you like fantasy board
gaming, perhaps this will appeal to you, if not, there are far more
exciting things to do with your time.
Cecily Boys
Andrew Clover - Dad Rules
Pleasance Dome
**(*)
Andrew Clover returns to the Fringe with a show based on his Sunday
Times column, which is of the now-common type of confessional articles
about the writer's own family life.
Clover does his own intro over the PA before appearing in a tight-fitting
suit, which he asks the audience's opinion on using an old comedians'
routine starter. After some banter with selected audience members, Clover
talks about his domestic life as a stay-at-home dad from the time he
was persuaded by his wife that they should have children, through the
birth and on to the behaviour of his little girl. He breaks off to deal
with latecomers, and, as there were an unusually large number of these
at this particular performance, it was difficult for him to get through
a gag in one go for about the first ten minutes.
The stories themselves have lots of amusing observations and produced
quite a bit of laughter of recognition early on from parents in the
audience. It's easy to imagine being amused when reading these carefully-worded
tales in a newspaper, but despite Clover's energetic style, there is
very little added by the performance that you couldn't get from reading
the column. Before he begins each tale, he tells the audience what the
last line is so that they know when to clap, which may have seemed an
amusingly quirky thing to do, but actually it draws attention to the
fact that these are stories and not comedy routines and therefore don't
have punchlines.
The stories are linked by improvised banter with the audience, some
of which is quite funny, but some produces looks from the recipient
that suggest he would be punched if he'd have said this to him or her
in a bar, and some general jokes, a few of which are quite old and tired.
Some of Clover's past Edinburgh shows have been quite experimental
and have not always worked because he was trying something new, but
this isn't innovative at all so there is less of an excuse for it not
working. There are some funny moments, but even those in this particular
audience who were laughing a lot at the beginning were listening and
smiling quietly by the end.
David Chadderton
Moonlight
By Harold Pinter
Liverpool University Drama Society
C soco
**
Regardless of how much you like your Pinter, Sunday morning at 11am
is a hard slot to fill. And so it was with only two in the audience.
Pinter's play on dying, family dysfunction, lost children, infidelities
and class differences is a difficult piece to reconcile and requires
something more than this university drama society maintained. Although
there are some good performances, such as the actor playing Andy, pieces
such as the brothers mocking their father's meetings fell flat and the
daughter, essentially a displaced piece of writing within the play,
always provide great challenges. Here unfortunately the challenge is
not surmounted and a difficult play combined with an inexperienced cast
makes for uneasy viewing.
Cecily Boys
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