The Boy With Tape On His Face @ Gilded Ballooon

There's something slightly disturbing about the Tape on the Boy's Face. It makes him look like he's being held hostage, and sometimes you just want to rip the tape off and let him do a normal stand-up routine.

That's because The Boy is a normal stand-up, not a mime. He does observational humour, cultural references, prop comedy and a hell of a lot of audience participation (I counted seven people hauled up on stage in total). He just happens to have his gob taped shut.

A gimmick? Yes, but it’s an inspired gimmick that turns the whole show into something that never stops being surprising. There's no patter or set-up, nothing to allow you to guess where each routine is going. You just have to sit there in total bewilderment until the punchline suddenly appears, like a rabbit pulled from a magician's hat. It’s hilarious for the audience, terrifying for the people called up on stage.

Although some routines are better than others, this show is a joy and the Boy may have just invented a new genre of comedy.