If monkeys could be butlers, I imagine they would be a little hit and miss in terms of the service provided. Likewise, The Monkey Butlers show is a little hit and miss when it comes to the comedy served up. There are some real gems in amongst the sketches, but also a few [...]

The dark comedy of this play, which deals with the hardships of raising a disabled child, is wonderfully brought to life in this production by an exceptional young cast. Of particular note is Jeremy Smith’s confident performance as Brian, which shows a maturity well beyond his years. Comic timing is essential in this [...]

Oh dear. I think I may be suffering from multiple personality disorder… How can I love, hate, pity, loathe, admire and despise the same person in just one hour? Quite easily, it seems, if that person happens to be Ben Willbond (who I fear may be suffering from a similar condition). His [...]

The thing about Brendan Burke is that while he’s a stand-up, he’s not of the “story telling” ilk of comics. Obviously he has some material, but most of his charm comes from a sense that he has absolutely no idea where the act could go when he gets up on stage. And for the show [...]

With the finest improvisation game that I’ve seen from any Fringe show this year (or in other years) this comedy sketch show is well worth staying up for it’s almost midnight curtain up time. Written and performed by two newcomers to the Fringe, the Beginners Guide to the Fringe is allegedly a show with all [...]

‘ “Triangle” excavate their legendary rock opus flop’ goes the entry in the Fringe guide, and they’re half right, because I see no reason for this show to flop. With tongue firmly in cheek, (cast members)
There’s no backstage antics, no look at the dysfunctional group, this is simple the show that fictional group “Triangle” [...]

Product sees playwright Mark Ravenhill’s return to the Fringe and his acting debut. Ravenhill plays a filmmaker pitching his newest script to young starlet Amy, over whom he paws and purrs as the salesman turned showman. The screenplay and product in question is ‘Mohammed & Me’ – a tale of love, lust and [...]

Another Sci-Fi offering from Festival Theatre USA to complement their Star Wars in Thirty Minutes Opus, Science Fiction Blast Off Theatre is a collection of short vignettes in the style of the late 50s pulp SF anthology TV shows. Think sketch comedy with an interesting twist to make you think at the end once you [...]

Hush is a fascinating and frightening study of domestic violence and mental illness. Griff (Alex Palmer) convinces himself that his wife Lydia (Juliet Cowan) is having an affair and in order to confirm her betrayal imagines he is talking to their unborn child Jack.
Such a premise obviously requires an enormous suspension of disbelief from [...]

Being able to hold the stage and the audience’s attention for an hour is the main challenge of this production. Regrettably there is an awkwardness to this performance which goes beyond any traits of the title character, Valentine Day, whose monologue this is. Fortunately there are moments in which the stage does come [...]