Ahoy readers, today may be the first official day of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, but theQR has already been hard at work in the reviewing trenches. From the brave acts who let us in the door whilst they were still in preview, here are our top 3 picks – don’t miss them! In no particular order:
Pierre Novellie – Must We
Pierre Novellie’s ‘Must We’ is a comedy tour-de-force from a talented comedian in exceptionally fine form. It’s devilishly clever, relentlessly funny, fabulously delivered, and thought-provoking in a fascinating, not head-scratching, fashion.
The scintillating opening discourse on fairness is worth the price of admission alone. I don’t know that it’s possible to develop an enduring fondness for a comedian faster than I did on my first encounter.
John Robertson – The Human Hurricane
The wild and wonderful John Robertson is doubling up his workload this Fringe (if you aren’t aware of the Dark Room, where have you been?). The Human Hurricane is an hour of improvised comedy and more crowdwork than you can snap a whip at.
Expect songs like nothing you’ve ever heard before, or will hear again, accompanied by John’s roaring ukulele. Expect him to find you, wherever you’re sitting. He will pick on you, and you’ll like it. No, you really will. It turns out it is possible to build an entire room up through a mix of profound and profane observation. Expect to roar with laughter, sing along, and exit feeling at least 10% better than when you went in.
ARI: The Spirit of Korea
In a departure from comedy, I offer you the all-singing, all-dancing, all-drumming ARI: The Spirit of Korea. Based on the ancient Korean song ‘Arirang’ – twice included in UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage lists, ARI offers a lavish adventure set in an era long before a border sundered Korea.
The sound quality is sensational, the choral power a wonder, and the dance numbers thrilling. Expect a stick-based dance routine to shame Dick Van Dyke and ‘Step in Time.’ When they wheel the drums come out, you’ll feel the rhythms thrumming through your feet. Expect to be humming the title song for days after.
It’s a storybook tale familiar to cultures worldwide, an earnest but gullible father lost in the big smoke, found and rescued by his offspring. There are lashings of romance, comedy, and even a touch of tragedy. The characters are memorable, and the talent on display is something else.
That’s been theQR’s Top 3 Pre-Fringe Picks – I consider them unmissable. The competition was fierce, such is the quality of what we’ve seen already! To find out the other shows we’ve already reviewed and considered unmitigated successes, check out our Fringe reviews now!
By
By
By
