A one-woman show about her early adult life with a naughty cat (calling whom naughty is a criminal understatement) is filled with ammunition for big belly laughs. Knowing that this bizarrely thrilling story is a true one amplifies the entertainment value. Couple that with some poetic storytelling and you're sailing. A midday show, however, can be expected to be milder and the mildness of this loaded show left laughs lacking.
More expletives and adult jokes got the bigger laughs from the audience, which is telling of what even mid-afternoon audiences look for. They would have fit nicely in the story with the unprecedented levels of havoc that Linda caused in Helena's life.
You don't need to be a cat lover to get cat humour and I found myself wanting more feline funny to certify Helena as Brighton Fringe's resident cat lady. Helena was born in Slovakia and raised in Britain, and Linda appeared in her life in her early twenties. Early integration of Brexit material into the show made me skeptical – "why would a crazy cat story need to link back to leaving the EU?" I thought. I expect leaving the EU to be a main theme at the Fringe, but my first show seeming to have such a tenuous link did fill me with a bit of dread. However, it did pay off with a poignant and poetic conduction of the feeling of belonging both for Helena and Linda. For this reason, the ending - with its great twist - was the perfect way to finish this tumultuous story.
The set was very low tech and sound effects used wisely despite there being temptation for overkill. The simple and imaginative use of boxes allowed the audience to manifest the geography of the settings effortlessly.
An altogether fun show; just lacking the danger in the comedy of which there was an abundance in the story.
- PASSPAWT is produced by Actors Workshop & HeavenLee Theatre running at the Sweet Dukebox from 5-8 May at 16:00.
Wonderful review!