one4review | On 13, Aug 2018

Well, this was an unexpected delight. Some performers tell stories, and you never leave the venue. Mr Hedges tells stories and transports you to his car at the service station, his parents’ living room, the pub, his school. He even manages to drag you on the same emotional rollercoaster, and even though you know he’s doing it (manipulating wee nyaff) he’s so endearing that you go with him anyway. It is worth it.

Edd talks fast – sometimes so fast he doesn’t even finish his words – but it’s never at the expense of clarity. And he is quite capable of talking slowly, if his narrative demands it. He draws you in with the description and the details and the way they’re just thrown in; huge plot points just scattered like insignificant marbles. And again, that half-knowing manipulation: you know you’re being set up, but what for? Tragedy or comedy?

The show’s structure is coherent, the framing narrative linking (however tenuously) to all of the other stories nested within it. Edd is immediately likeable on stage, reassuring the audience that it’s a safe show and he doesn’t mind if people need a wee or phones accidentally go off. He doesn’t do crowd work, and the couple of times he does talk directly to an individual, he asked if they were okay with it. Eventually, the title of the show is clarified, and reveals yet another reason to like him.

Fabulous.

Reviewed by Laura
Gilded Balloon Teviot, 16:00
Until 26th