Aeneas Faversham review - SkinnyFest 2
The absurd logic of the Victorian psyche is superbly sourced in this bright sketch show by the players of The Penny Dreadfuls.
| 14 Aug 2006
The absurd logic of the Victorian psyche is superbly sourced in this bright sketch show by the players of The Penny Dreadfuls. Gravediggers and crooked surgeons, Yorkshire vampire hunters, puritanical clowns and camp, duelling city gents are all on stage for this Gothic dance around Dickensian Britain.
The kinship between the four players is delightful and reminiscent of the troupe in the Mahwaff Theatre Company's Angry Young Man from last year's Fringe. Humphrey Ker, a prototype John Cleese, begins proceedings by channelling his talent into Horatio T Station, a coach master for whom Woking is an essential destination. Indeed the humour in part stems from such a lofty man performing next to his counterparts under the shallow roof of the Belly Dancer theatre.
The zaniness of The Goon Show and Python seeps through the sketches, from the "brilliant" Sherlock sleuth to the ex-colonial army captain who tells his vengeful soldiers: "I gave you the order to retreat, or at least I led by example."
The show is not entirely consistent. Some sketches peter out rather than crescendo, though this is more due to a deviation in comic timing as opposed to a paucity of material. For while this production sometimes falters from the pedestal of nonsensical, gleeful amusement, seldom does it not land on the pyre of clever entertainment.
The kinship between the four players is delightful and reminiscent of the troupe in the Mahwaff Theatre Company's Angry Young Man from last year's Fringe. Humphrey Ker, a prototype John Cleese, begins proceedings by channelling his talent into Horatio T Station, a coach master for whom Woking is an essential destination. Indeed the humour in part stems from such a lofty man performing next to his counterparts under the shallow roof of the Belly Dancer theatre.
The zaniness of The Goon Show and Python seeps through the sketches, from the "brilliant" Sherlock sleuth to the ex-colonial army captain who tells his vengeful soldiers: "I gave you the order to retreat, or at least I led by example."
The show is not entirely consistent. Some sketches peter out rather than crescendo, though this is more due to a deviation in comic timing as opposed to a paucity of material. For while this production sometimes falters from the pedestal of nonsensical, gleeful amusement, seldom does it not land on the pyre of clever entertainment.
Aeneas Faversham, Underbelly, until August 27, 18:00, £9/£8 (£8/£7).