one4review | On 10, Aug 2016

I think, if I had to describe this show, I’d call it character comedy, as well as the clown and theatre comedy it’s listed under. Ms Godden (of Grandees note, if you managed to see that nugget of genius) tends towards extreme physical embodiment of her characters in order to make the funny, rather than any sort of telling jokes.

Someone has stolen John’s porridge bowl, and since no one will own up to it, the audience are subjected to the tender mercies of the rest of the ‘gang’. And from this shaky premise we were treated to a series of weird and wonderful characters.

Marny’s physical comedy (and her dancing) is brilliant, and her facial expressions manage to convey a whole range of emotions, even when the most you can see of it is her nose and eyes. I struggled more with some of the more word-dependent comedy, though some of the audience struggled full stop, especially with the terror of being pulled up on stage paralysing them.

This is comedy wandering round and randomly poking at the boundaries, just to make sure of what’s funny and what’s too awkward. It’s a good-natured hour of nonsense that won’t be (and wasn’t) to everyone’s tastes.

Hive, 15:00

Reviewed by Laura