The Definitive Guide to Comedy
⭐⭐⭐½ I’m not surprised that Sam Jay could put on one of the best stand-up hours at the Fringe (I had Jay’s 2020 special ranked second in my year-end list). I am surprised the judges at the Edinburgh Fringe decided this was one of the best shows among the 3,000+ …
⭐⭐⭐ Not to be Throwing Shade, as it were, but Bryan Safi’s show feels like a cabaret show yearning for the full cabaret experience. Safi’s tech is proficient enough, but what Safi really could benefit from here is a piano player who can not only chime in, but also add …
⭐⭐⭐⭐½ Lorna Rose Treen was one of my favorite newcomers at the 2023 Fringe, and she has made a triumphant return with her sophomore show, upping the ante, the antics, and the anticipatory delight for what might come next. But first, we’re treated to a showcase shining a light on …
⭐⭐⭐⭐ Me like show very much. Monkey Barrel’s two rooms at The Hive are far from the only converted bomb shelters you’ll find Fringe shows in across Edinburgh each August. But The Hive, normally a bustling dance club, just might bear the most distinguishable stench still lingering in the air …
⭐⭐⭐½ This could and should be a 4-star review and perhaps is on a lot of days, but my audience simply wasn’t up to the task Jeromaia Detto assigned us. That’s not his fault. But it is a particular risk in fashioning a clown show where so much responsibility is …
⭐⭐⭐½ Irish actress Sarah Maria Lafferty co-starred in a two-hander “The Bad Daters” at the 2023 Fringe, and she returns this summer with a solo show bearing a slightly misleading title. After all, Lafferty will be the first to acknowledge she’s no movie star yet. But she has a plan. …
⭐⭐⭐⭐ Weight-loss by injection has become so popular, so fast, it’s really changed the body-positivity game overnight. Irish comedian Alison Spittle feels betrayed by Adele for slimming down, and she’s keeping an eye on Lizzo. At least Spittle still has Shrek to count on as a role model. But if …
⭐⭐⭐⭐½ “I am here because you were there.” In case you’re wondering why a Kuwaiti-born Irish-Palestinian actor and comedian would spend his August in Scotland. Yes. You read that sentence correctly. Sami Abu Wardeh’s father tried to return to Palestine in 1967 to fight to get the family’s land back, …
⭐⭐⭐⭐ An actress and improviser from Adelaide, Sophie Power disappears beneath the bouffon layers that transform her into a ginormous genitalia. After winning awards at Fringes in her native Australia, Power has brought her buffoonery to Edinburgh, where her high-energy antics make a perfect fit for the late-night atmosphere in …
⭐⭐⭐½ Divisive is an understatement. If it helps, go into this show knowing that Alan Resnick is the creator of Adult Swim’s disturbing infomercials, Unedited Footage of a Bear and This House Has People in It, and think of this performance not as “funny” or even “comedy” but as a …
