Day 1 - Thursday 6th August 2015
If you look carefully at each of the show detail pictures you will find a web address which will take you to a better synopsys and reviews. I havn’t made these links live as they are part of the fringe programme likely to be disabled after the 2015 Fringe is over.
Performance 1
I associate parts like Spike and James Twelvetrees with Jeffrey Holland, but must say I was very impressed with his performance in this one man show about a visit by Stan Laurel to Oliver Hardy after the famous fatman had had a stroke.
Performance 2
Not, perhaps, as good as the real thing but well worth the ticket price.
Performance 3
This was the first example of “mask theatre” I had ever seen and hope it will not be the last. There is no dialogue and each actor wears a character mask while acting out the play. When they all took a bow at the end of play I was very surprised to realise there were only four actors playing the ten or so parts.
Performance 4
For me this play was the days big disappointment, I like John Hannah and usually like what he does, not unfortunately this, still three out of four is not bad.
Day 2 - Friday 7th August 2015
Performance 1
This play divided opinion in our little group, I enjoyed it others did not.
Performance 2
We were looking forward to this event, but it unfortunately failed to deliver from the start (when the lights failed) to the unfunny end. The event was held in the rear of a pub so the improvisation may have been funnier if a few drinks had been consumed beforehand.
Performance 3
A thought provoking explanation of consumerism using the medium of Alice in Wonderland - very enjoyable.
Performance 4
A very strange play, but no less enjoyable for that, with just three actors one of whom was deaf so the company ternded to do plays with little or no dialogue and a fourth member signed from the corner of the stage and played “the voice” at the other end of the phone.
Performance 5
A band comprising drummer, claronetist/trumpeter/saxophonist/guitarist, and keyboard player and two skimpily dressed women provided an hour or more of great entertainment.
Todays score was an impresive four out of five were worth seeing and the fifth was not that bad.
Day 3 - Tuesday 11th August 2015
Performance 1
After our experience with “Upstairs Downton” I can’t say I was looking forward to this event expecting a re-run of the previous rather amateur affair. Nothing could have been further from the truth. This, despite being an improvisation, was a polished and professional event, it was also very funny.
Performance 2
I was being very kind when I called this a performance. It was the biggest load of rubbish it has ever been my misfortune to sit through. Frank had the right idea when after ten minutes he got up and left, I wish I had joined him.
Performance 3
This we thought would be the highlight of our Fringe experience, we had seen Hardeep on the TV a number of times and liked him and his material. I was very disapointed indeed not only did he spend a great deal of time teaching a ten year old boy foul language and when to shout it to maximum effect. His comedy was rambling and disjointed to such an extent that he seemed frequently to loose where he was. I suspect it was down to the five P’s (poor preperation leads to p**s poor performance). We saw him on TV a few niights later when without the language and with the interviewer steering firmly he was again witty and personable.
Performance 4
We went to this show because R&F’s daughter-in-law is Japanese and thought a lighthearted look at the cultural differences between the two nations would be amusing and informative. It started well with a colleague of the performer (Michael Hill) talking about her time as an adult education teacher in Japan sadly it all went down hill when Hill gave his routine. There were amusing moments, his description of trying to avoid shaking hands with someone in a toilet before hands had been washed was quite funny but overall seemed to have little to do with Japan or Tokyo and all to do with him being a twerp.
Todays scores were one good, one OK, one bad and one absolutely AWFUL. Not good for our last day but overall it was a great experience.