Lil Wenker @ Pleasance Courtyard

Lil Wenker’s Bangtail (friends call him Alan) is a rootin’ tootin’ straight shootin' good old fashioned cowboy, lovingly rendered through the eyes of a clown. He’s the baddest man in Texas – until he’s not.

His tale features all the hallmarks of a classic Western: inhospitable environs, shoot outs, seduction and heartbreak. We follow along, and often instigate, as the show progresses through a series of two character scenes featuring a repertory cast from the audience. Conceptually it’s as smart as it is silly, the audience set-ups are inventive and stupid, and the form suits the genre like a holster suits a gun.

Wenker has a natural way with the audience, making them feel safe enough to engage with the audience participation during a timeslot which does not allow for much drinking beforehand. In this regard, it’s hard not to feel we’ve been robbed of the chance of seeing the show later in the day – it’s built on so much play with the audience that you feel you haven’t properly seen the show until you’ve seen it with the chaos of a more relaxed crowd.

Following an identity crisis for our hero, the second half-hour flips the first on its head. The spin is clever, but the transitional section feels uncontextualized, leaving us slightly adrift during the rest of the show. The audience sometimes loses sight of the journey of self-discovery they’re supposed to be watching, meaning that the climax can come as a bit of a surprise.

Regardless, BANGTAIL is a whole lot of fun – a celebration of the things we accept as silly, and of the serious and manly pursuits whose silliness nobody wants to admit.

---

Lil Wenker: BANGTAIL, Pleasance Courtyard (Cellar), until 25 Aug (not 12), 4.15pm, £9-12