52 Man Pick Up @ Hill Street

The lost loves and the passionate fumbling of comedienne and performer, Desiree Burch, makes the basis of her comedy solo, 52 Man Pick Up, an interactive show that compares Burch’s sexual liaisons with the sadistic card game, 52 pick up.

Marking the second time that Burch has brought her fun, honest and highly original show to Edinburgh, following its run at The Free Fringe in 2009, 52 Man Pick Up contains the same cards and the same games, but as the cards are selected at random, every show and every laugh is different.

While there are some people who would argue that we live in a patriarchal society, there are others who couldn’t care less. But one thing is certain, in today’s society, many people feel that a woman who is open about her sex life and the amount of lovers that she’s had isn’t the sort of woman that you’d want to get to know. But Burch isn’t one of these women, and her ability to list her various conquests, dating disasters and other assorted sexcapades, makes 52 Man Pick Up an absolutely riveting, and debauched Fringe delight.

Following the same structure as before, where Burch goes through a deck of cards where each individual card represents a particular hook up, the show, while very similar to its 2009 Free Fringe premiere, has matured substantially. Although audience participation is needed at various points throughout the performance, Burch’s style and delivery is much more relaxed and more enjoyable to watch than before. Still maintaining the same fantastical energy, and way with words as before, the show moves beyond the funny anecdotes about bad sex/good sex/sex with a real pirate, not a Jonny Depp pirate, 52 Man Pick Up has become an angst-free celebration of the birds and the bees.

Performed with tongue firmly in cheek, this meeting of the nasties is a strong piece of theatre that implores women to take control of their body, their desires and their sexuality, and have fun the next time they ‘bump uglies’ with their partner, or another. Vivacious, sassy and downright sexy, Burch should be a regular on the Fringe comedy circuit.