Crizards @ Assembly George Square

Crizards – Will Rowland and Eddy Hare – quickly set the bar for their gun-slinging journey through the Wild West in their debut show as a double act. The bar is high, the energy low (as they were once reviewed, a fact they poke fun at in their opening song). Jordan Brookes’ directorial input has left its mark, too, with glimmers of existentialism and a sense of slow unravelling. But Rowland and Hare make it their own; there’s no feeling of threat or unease – just two guys having a rootin-tootin’ time.

The pair play different roles – there are their cowboy characters, and then there's Hare, the ‘straight man’, in parallel with the heartbroken Rowland whose plight (being dumped after a long-term relationship) often derails the narrative. The act is complete with cowboy costumes, prop silliness, and Deep South accents. Admittedly pretty terrible accents at times, but it’s fitting for a show whose premise slowly unravels as Hare and Rowland slip in and out of character. There are times where the jump between their Wild West characters and their ‘real’ characters distracts from the fun we’re all having in their imaginary cowboy world. But it’s easy to imagine that, with a fuller, weekend crowd instead of the quieter weekday one here, their momentum is likely easier to maintain in these moments.

There’s a mixture of great gags in there: an extended scene based on milking a cow, and songs about burning your bits off, talking to the moon, the dangers of quicksand, and friendship. Alongside chaotic character breaks, the result is often hilarious, as Hare and Rowland lean into a structure that occasionally leaves its audience confused but laughing in the face of it.

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Crizards: Cowboys, Assembly George Square (Studio Four), run ended