Brighton Fringe 2024
Marvin and the Dodgyspinners
Mark Tournoff
Genre: Cabaret, Character Stand up, Comedy, Family, Fringe Theatre, New Writing, Short Plays, Theatre
Venue: Regency Bubble
Festival: Brighton Fringe
Low Down
“Marvin Dodgyspin/How the hell did he get in?” goes the catchy jingle. Mark Tournoff is the brainstorm behind the five-strong Marvin and the Dodgyspinners performing at the Regency Bubble till June 1st.
Worth considering when it returns
Devised, written and directed by Mark Tournoff, with Technical support from Regency Bubble. Names of the have been requested.
Till June 1st
Review
“Marvin Dodgyspin/How the hell did he get in?” goes the catchy jingle. Mark Tournoff is the brainstorm behind the five-strong Marvin and the Dodgyspinners performing at the Regency Bubble till June 1st.
Tournoff compares as hapless capitalist-loving Marvin Dodgyspin who warns us against his identical twin in the following acts of a revue he’s put together against his better judgement, to elevate him to the board of his nasty company. His acts appear as themselves, and a couple are well-known Fringe actors.
It’s a shrewd move to energise an opening after a soft-spoken intro with Sasha Cooper. Cooper’s the finest all-round performer here, and has enormous presence. She tells us her life story, how dancing as a swan she was told by Piers Morgan in the Paul O’Grady Show she was “too old, too short and too fat” and nearly collapsed till O’Grady encouraged Cooper to get up and challenge. Well Sasha and Megan both. All through her act Cooper encourages audience participation and everyone owning their truth. It’s like being at one of Cooper’s radio shows, but live. And now she dances.
Next up is Eva Marie, a fine professional dancer who hands out dollar notes then collects them as she pirouettes on a pin throws shapeshifting serves and generally diverts. What Eva Marie needs is a deeper rationale. Happily she returns.
Midway there’s Tournoff’s twin Martin, no longer in top hat and grey shining suit, but hippy Californian gear. The surprise is the song. Long disparaged by his altered ego Marvin, in fact it’s memorable, witty and well-sung, Tournoff backing himself and crediting a guitar-riff from one Bill.
He introduces three following acts. Philip J Willett gifts a hapless traffic warden routine, and one sees there’s simply not enough for Willett to do.
Next Marie returns with halfway through a partner, Cooper, who specialises in belly-dancing. The routine’s USP is for the audience to press a buzzer and change the song. Two children impishly obliged and the dazzling gallimaufry of shapes and dances was over in 10 minutes. It’s fun and like Cooper’s other routine, engages audiences.
Finally and before the finale. Tristan Wolfe as a hapless man – a Tournoff standard – wraps. Last seen at 23.45 last night on one show, setting up the NVT show tonight, and then acting in it, it’s a wonder Wolfe is even upright. It’s fair to say his hapless routine needs more snap and to be that hapless (like Michael Crawford) needs pace and timing. Wolfe’s more than capable of writing and adapting his own material, and this serious talent seems underused here because he’s being overused everywhere else.
The finale brought credits to creatives behind the show, and they deserve it. This s a show needing much love and attention, and a serious rewrite from some participants, pulled together by Tournoff, to heighten its participants’ talents; perhaps like Cooper being allowed to generate more of their own.
Fun in parts, Marie’s dancing, Tournoff’s song and above all Cooper’s presence and scorching, funny witness makes this worth considering when it returns.
