One Night Stand: An Improvised Musical

The cast of One Night Stand resemble the kind of people who become cub-scout leaders in later life. Pink faced and ebullient, they kick things off with a series of preparatory hoops and hollers as they punch their little fists in the air. Tonight, they ask the crowd for two titles – the name that the show itself will be given and the title of one song, which they will be required to fit within the structure of the musical. The audience want The Magicians Face with a musical interlude of ‘Abe Lincoln Would’ve Wanted It That Way.’

The considerable talent of the group is immediately evident. They each have strong singing voices and a keen awareness of what the crowd is looking for. Often, the humour does not rely solely upon amusing, madcap rhymes but involves the giddy anticipation of the scene's seemingly impossible resolution. There are very few moments when, grasping for a cadence, one of the actors resorts to a throwaway line to wrap things up (Ryan Stiles used to repeatedly do this on the much maligned Whose Line Is It Anyway, especially where the musical numbers required him to rap). There is a great deal of musical comedy in The Fringe this year – Sex and the Village and the improvised Showstopper to name a couple, but this act is presented by some fine performers who manage to steer clear of the usual hackneyed territory.