one4review | On 11, Aug 2023

You know what you’re getting with Sofie Hagen: really well-told stories by a genuinely funny comedian at a show where you needn’t fear the front row. Sofie doesn’t do audience interaction because she doesn’t need to to get us on board, and because it’s far more interesting if she talks about herself. It makes her shows accessible for a whole load of folk, as does the itinerary Ms Hagen provides – entirely within the show’s premise, without breaking the flow – but enough to give an anchor point so we knew where we were. Another subtle accessibility aid.

This show’s quite stand-up in nature, but still displays Ms Hagen’s superb ability with building and releasing tension, and with creating comedy from the unexpected. Many of her biggest laughs (of which there are numerous) came from setting up and subverting expectations, and doing so in places and with topics you wouldn’t necessarily expect.

On the surface – dictators, duck feet and sex therapists – the show probably shouldn’t cohere as well as it did, but Ms Hagen is an excellent writer as well as performer, and so her narrative skill and her delivery make it work. She’s a master of the call back. She has that leadership quality that means she never loses the audience, even when she’s saying some pretty weird stuff. And she presents as a lovely, grounded and relatable person. Log this show as continuing evidence of an excellent comedian.

Reviewed by Laura

Monkey Barrel 3

14:50 (1hr)

Until 27th (not Tuesdays)