Theatre / living spit
Review: Living Spit’s Nativity, Bristol Old Vic
Anthropologists tell us that, in hunter-gatherer societies, the best storytellers are considered even more valuable than the most skillful hunters. Tribes with more excellent storytellers have stronger collective bonds and are more altruistic. The most esteemed storytellers are incredibly successful in terms of sexual reproduction.
Which brings us to Howard and Stu. Because Living Spit are back with gold, frankincense, myrrh (whatever that is) and a donkey load of dodgy jokes.
Seriously though, whereas once our society would have been full of shared stories and storytellers, nowadays the closest we get to an oral tradition is teaching each other how to floss. In this context, there was something intensely comforting about settled back to enjoy a new rendering of The Greatest Story Ever Told©.
is needed now More than ever
From an inexplicably Brummie Joseph, via three kings who are more BoJo buffoons than wise men, to a God / Arcangel Gabriel double act that trades heavily on the ambiguous hierarchy and informality of the modern workplace, Living Spit’s Nativity packs out Biblical Judea with some very modern tropes and characters. The trick is a reasonably familiar one, and as the lights came up for the interval my companion said “this is just like watching a really excellent school nativity!” (definitely a compliment. Being a serious journalist, I checked).
Howard Coggins and Stu McLoughlin packed in half a dozen songs, two shepherds, two wise men, one King Herod, a slightly awkward slaughter of the innocents and some super-smooth costume changes (always useful to have God on hand to remind you to put on your halo).
Living Spit’s Nativity is a hilarious re-telling of a classic tale. As you’d expect from this duo, the mishaps and improvisations inherent in the Biblical story are brought home. With incidents like the overbooked inn, Howard and Stu bring a fallible humanity to the fore. As somebody who has on numerous occasions failed to book ahead to secure sufficient accommodation, this was a Christmas message I could get behind.
Living Spit’s Nativity continues at Bristol Old Vic until Saturday, December 22. For more information and to book tickets, visit bristololdvic.org.uk/whats-on/living-spits-nativity
Read more: Review: Shesus and the Sisters, Tobacco Factory Theatres
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