by ⭐⭐⭐½
If you’ve never witnessed a performer struggle with an empty room in the middle of the day and question all of their choices, then have you even Fringed, bruv?
Narin Oz’s hour isn’t and wasn’t quite that. There were a few others in attendance, and Oz definitely knows what she’s doing and what she wants to be doing. But I kind of wish the few others weren’t there, because hers is an hour that definitely plays best one-on-one. Of course, yes, it might also have an entirely different majesty to it when playing to a full house. And yet. While plenty of comedians at Fringe like to joke about or even boast about their ADHD or neurodivergence, it’s next level to see a truly neurodivergent performer in action. Which means she commands your full attention, or else her own attention might drift.
The core of her actual show plays off the Tom Hanks film, Cast Away, casting Oz metaphorically adrift, lost at sea, trying to find her true self. And all she has are a bunch of slightly inflated balloons, a low-budget version of Cast Away‘s Wilson volleyball, and a comical pile of shit dragging behind her. Oz bears more than a slight resemblance to Julia Louis-Dreyfus. Now imagine the Veep and Seinfeld star with a UK accent, bringing nothing but Elaine Dance energy. It’s wild. It’s weird. It’s playfully wild and weird.
Narin Oz: Inner Child(ish) plays Just The Tonic’s Just The Attic through Aug. 24, 2025.
