Doctor Brown: Befrdfgth

Review by Bernard O'Leary | 10 Aug 2012

It starts off with a traditional bit of crowd irritation: kicking people in the arse as they file in, nicking drinks and shopping bags: the usual Doctor Brown experience. Without a fanfare, the show fades into existence, with Brown miming out some bizarre scenes, often themed with sex and torture, plus a long sequence involving deadbeat dads of the bovine variety.

It's all very good, but the bare lights and absence of music can sometimes make you wish you were watching a mime with a bit more razzmatazz, like The Boy With Tape On His Face. And then something happens. One especially brilliant piece of audience interaction sets this show on fire. We rewind to the start and see it played out again in a giddy manner that bends time, space and the minds of the audience.

It's a triumph of imagination, with the Doctor bringing his strange inner dreamscapes to life in vivid technicolor using nothing but mime (and one luckless audience member). The Doctor wears an odd costume throughout, which makes him look like a cross between a clown and a wizard. Turns out he is both of those things.

Doctor Brown: Befrdfgth, Underbelly, Cowgate, until 26 August (not Mondays), 9.05pm, £11.50/£10.50 http://www.edfringe.com/whats-on/comedy/doctor-brown-befrdfgth