When a critic previously branded comedian Katie Norris a “succubus,” maybe they intended it as a swipe against a woman taking up too much room. In Mother Succubus, Norris reclaims the insult with magnificent, gothic disdain. Arriving on stage in the Pleasance Courtyard to ominous sound effects, clad in a cinched gothic bodice with a black crow perched on her shoulder, Norris adopts the demonic moniker as a grand alter-ego—part cynical agony aunt for younger women, part vengeful siren bent on punishing inadequate men. Brava!
Beneath this overbearing theatrical posture lies an exceptionally observed stand-up hour anchored in the absurd horrors of modern dating. Having endured a staggering 143 first dates without a single second, Norris declares a firm moratorium on the “sushi train” of mansplaining suitors—including men who dutifully explain why Stewart Lee ought to be her favourite comedian. Tired of the male gaze, she pivots her affections toward a new audience, aiming to supplant Jane McDonald as an icon for male gays.
Her material ranges from razor-sharp commentary on the activities women embrace as they age into societal invisibility—from wild swimming to joining community choirs—to delightful, surreal tangents involving nostalgia for 1990s Eurotrash, a mysterious rattle in her car engine, and the unexpected perils of navigating the Bath T-junction.
Musical Bravura and Misplaced Castings
Norris is a rare, multifaceted comic talent whose vocal dexterity matches her visceral character work. Possessing a formidable alto, her musical interludes provide some of the hour’s highest peaks. A soaring, hilarious anthem unpacks her traumatising Year 9 school casting as a Victorian prostitute under the direction of a drama teacher from “the non-showering community,” while another skewers the cultural stranglehold of the Military Wives choir alongside a surprisingly tender ode to weekend dads.
Her crowd work is equally formidable; whether interrogating front-row men about their favourite power tools or roasting a love-hungry audience member, Norris walks the high wire between theatrical terror and affectionate warmth with supreme confidence.
“Beneath this overbearing theatrical posture lies an exceptionally observed stand-up hour anchored in the absurd horrors of modern dating.“
Her crowd work is equally formidable; whether interrogating front-row men about their favourite power tools or roasting a love-hungry audience member, Norris walks the high wire between theatrical terror and affectionate warmth with supreme confidence.
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At times, the production’s thematic connective tissue loosens as Norris’s penchant for pure absurdism—including an admiring nod to Australian mushroom-poisoner Erin Patterson and a bizarre story involving a deer—strains against the overarching succubus framing.
Yet such pacing concerns dissolve in the final movement. Stripping away the diabolic caricature to reveal the vulnerable woman underneath, Norris recounts meeting her current partner, a tradesman, with unvarnished, unromanticised honesty. Supported by a showstopping final musical number, Mother Succubus finishes on a cathartic high—confirming Norris as one of the most versatile comic talents at this year’s Fringe.
Show details
Venue: Venue 33: Pleasance Courtyard, 60 Pleasance, EH8 9TJ (Google Maps)
Date(s): Wed 05 Aug to Sun 30 Aug (25 shows)
Time(s): 9:25pm (60 mins)
Age recommendation: 14+
Price: From £10.0 (concessions available)
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