Edinburgh Fringe 2025
Lorna Rose Treen: 24 Hour Diner People
Lorna Rose Treen
Genre: character comedy, Comedy, Interactive, Solo Show
Venue: Pleasance Courtyard
Festival: Edinburgh Fringe
Low Down
Award-winning character comedian Lorna Rose Treen brings an archetypal American diner to life with a kooky crowd of very unique women. In a fun-packed hour of comedy, building on her award winning sketch comedy reputation and Radio 4 experience, Treen presents a highly recommended laugh out loud show.
Review
Lorna Rose Treen shot to fame at Edinburgh Fringe 2023 by winning Dave’s Best Joke of the Fringe Award that year. She’s partial to a pun (verbal and visual) and the gags come thick and fast in this, her first foray into comedy theatre. This solo show is more than stand up – or a series of sketches – there’s a narrative arc with delightfully over the top dramatic foreshadowing and the whole package is a very satisfying three course meal of a show.
Treen’s ambition is to give a voice to the “weird” and with this memorable cast she has achieved full marks. From the ridiculously cheerful candy-floss pink waitress hungry for tips, via a wannabe blowsy gangster’s moll, to a trucker with unfeasible long arms these are a gloriously daft collection of women living their best lives. Think Sarah Millican meets Su Pollard with added Tim Vine all together in an episode of Twin Peaks. It all adds up to be uniquely Lorna Rose Treen.
Her audience, a packed house of all ages, enthusiastically join in as directed, taking on bit parts of townsfolk. The audience participation involves a bit of mickey taking but feels safe and Treen’s warmth and ability to poke the most fun at herself create an inclusivity. Even her tech operator gets a look in, keeping this hectic show on track with some off the cuff verbal prompts. The show feels box fresh, a big plus, and even the odd blooper is part of the fun and handled slickly by Treen.
Some roughness around the edges will get ironed out as this Edinburgh run goes on but the hour feels over-packed, even though it is all delightful, and perhaps Treen and Director Jonathan Oldfield could consider giving her audiences a chance to catch breath with a handful of slower paced interludes . Fewer choices on the diner menu will lead to an even better quality feast in this frothy pink establishment (set design by Jimmy Slim providing a perfect bubblegum pink backdrop).
This is a great way to spend an hour at Edinburgh Fringe, in the company of a very skilled writer/performer who serves up slice after slice of surreal comedy pie.
