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Edinburgh Fringe 2011

Flyerman

Steve Davis and David Kurk

Genre: Comedy

Venue:

the Space @ Surgeons Hall

Festival:


Low Down

In the style of an old British comedy sketch show, this is about the experiences of flyering at the Fringe by people who have done it.  

Review

Old friends Steve Davis and David Kurk collectively have plenty of years of experience on the Fringe, but not as performers … as supporters of other performers, doing all those tasks that the fringe support teams are required to do, one of the main tasks being that of flyering for the shows.  Together they have put together an hour long sketch show that portrays some of the characters they have met, and some of the personal experiences they have had over the years.

As a person who is a fan of old British comedy duos such as ‘Morecombe and Wise’ and ’The Two Ronnies’, I enjoyed the format of this production, which genuinely worked.  Steve and David engaged in comic banter between each scene, before playing out their characterised sketches.  They also included a behind the scenes character (Nellie, an elephant) and created some ongoing drama with her throughout the performance.

Sound-track and lighting were well-thought out, and props simple and easily manipulated by the pair.  Costuming was appropriate, although I didn’t like the bad grey wig that the Ryan character wore.

There were, for me, some genuine ‘laugh-out-loud’ moments, and other members of the audience were certainly thoroughly enjoying themselves, as the duo progressed from sketch to sketch.  The material, however, could do with some editing, as some was a little ‘groan-worthy’, and there seemed to be a personal vendetta theme throughout that didn’t really add anything, and unnecessary clues as to who one of the characters was based on, but in my opinion, the basic premise and format of this show has legs.

I attended this show on the very last day of the run at the Fringe, so people are not likely to see a performance after reading this, however, if Kurk and Davis decide to spend some time developing their material over the next 12 months, and do a return season in the 2012 festival (perhaps you will want to get away from the Olympics at the other end of the country?), it would certainly be worth a look.

Three stars:  Recommended

Published