Edinburgh Fringe 2017
Low Down
In her UK debut hour Lynched, Carmen Lynch (Inside Amy Schumer, The Late Show with David Letterman, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Conan) shares her twisted, singular stand-up comedy, which frequently dips into the dark side.
Review
Carmen Lynch is an accomplished comedian who charms her audience with her vulnerability and her honesty as soon as they manage to walk into the Counting House loft, gasping for breath and winded from the climb. She adjusts fans so we don’t end up in a pool of sweat and she says, “This feels like an intervention.” And so she begins her monologue about life as a single, childless woman in New York City. She is 6’2” and speaks at length about the challenges of being tall and the attitudes people have about tall women. She says,” I still have a vagina. When you get so tall, do they take it away from you?” and continues, Because she is tall, “short guys follow me around. It makes me feel like Snow White.”
She discusses how we all want to be what we are not. For example, she dreams of being short. “I want to fit in someone’s pocket . But I don’t fit in anyone’s trunk.”
She is from America and she cannot resist taking a few jabs at the mess that country is in. “I’m happy Trump was elected. They say you need to do something scary every day. Now it’s living.”
Every single girl has to discuss the morning after pill and Lynch is no exception. She tells us the medical profession doesn’t tell you when it will kick in or how you know when it has worked: “I burped and that was the baby.”
And of course, she has to discuss dating as a single woman in our two by two society. “Break ups are worse than death because he is still alive.“ she says. And continues, ”I stopped on-line dating. Now, I just walk outside and hope.”
Public displays of affection annoy her because it is so embarrassing to see, she says, and when it comes to finding the right man, she prefers the older ones because they are so desperate. She talks about the difference of dating as a single person compared to when married people go out on date nights. When married people go out on a date, they always say, “Remember when we didn’t hate each other.”
Her parents were very religious but she is not. “I don’t go to church anymore,” she says. “I go to therapy. Religion is cheaper.”
This is a laugh-filled hour full of observations often too true to be funny, but Lynch twists them into something to laugh at. It is a well crafted show, well worth the climb to the top of the Counting House in the rain and wind of Edinburgh during the fringe.
