Theatre / bristol festival of puppetry
Review: Coulrophobia (Puppet Fest)
If you’ve ever wondered what’s behind the smile of a clown – and you’re over 16 – this show is for you.
The two-man comedy from Bristol’s Pickled Image explores the question with enough subversive humour to please the most cynical of theatregoers.
Hapless clowns Dik (Dik Downey) and Adam (Adam Blake) are stuck in a cardboard world where every one of their imaginative props, from chainsaw to schooner, is created from card. At first, they find ways to amuse themselves playing the roles we recognise. Initially, there are scary clowns, lit by creepy lighting; then there are silly clowns conducting a squeaky orchestra; finally, there are ringmaster clowns who engage the audience.
Most memorably, the pair entice 11 unsuspecting audience members to join them on stage at once, some for a cardboard cocktail party and others to enter a cardboard hairdressing salon.
But as time goes on it is becomes obvious that they are not alone after all. The voice of Poco booms through a (cardboard) PA system like Godot, controlling their every move. Like lost celebrities addicted to the thrill of entertaining, Poco forces them to dance, perform and make fools of themselves. Simply a puppet himself, ably controlled by Dik, Poco turns his clowns into figures of ridicule.
The ‘play within a play’ scenes may feel a little tired, but the joy of this show is in its ingenuity and there is some genuine brilliance in the puppetry and choreography.
In the end, though, Dik and Adam find a way to break Poco’s spell, and the action ends on a triumphant if ridiculous note (which is where the 16+ rating comes in).
At times mad, at other times slightly bewildering, these slapstick sketches may well stay with you longer than you would like them to.
Bristol Festival of Puppetry continues until Sunday, September 6 at various venues. For more info, visit www.puppetplace.org/festival and see our preview here.
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