one4review | On 11, Aug 2026

Lara Ricote bursts onto the stage as a ball of frenetic energy and declares herself very quickly as someone who loves mystery and is comfortable with other people knowing something she doesn’t. She also believes that everyone she ever encounters must have an important message for her.

The conceit of the show INKLING centring around the three Delphic maxims is an effective way to establish this, as she talks through these prevailing messages which are also somewhat indecipherable, especially if her manic impression of the Oracle of Delphi is to be believed as historically accurate. Within this structure, Ricote animatedly weaves different events from her life into the show — two of the most significant threads being her major breakup last year and a rude encounter with a mumbling man in a London museum.

Taking full advantage of the Monkey Barrel stage, she darts back and forth between three microphones, instigates various lighting changes and shows off some physical comedy with a cup of water. Because of her frenzied and energetic performance, you’re already rushing to keep up with her from the very beginning of the show, worried that you’ll miss something. It becomes very clear that this is very cleverly by design.

Ricote is hard-of-hearing, at one point commenting that a lot of the time she’s probably only picking up on 65% of what is going on in any interaction. Her love of mystery is borne from her reality of constantly trying to fill the gaps and keep up with what she is missing. The very nature of INKLING as a show therefore invites the audience into Ricote’s world for such a singular comedy experience.

4 stars ****
Reviewed by Niamh
Monkey Barrel 3 at Monkey Barrel Comedy
Until 30th August excl. 17th
17.40 – 18.40