So, 2019 is coming to a close. The year The Crumb was born (alongside some other, more questionable moments) and we’ve asked all our contributors to select their favourite show of the year. Have a read of them below. Happy New Year!
Nathan Charles
Ali Brice: Bin Wondering
The best thing about any Edinburgh Fringe is finding that absolute diamond in the rough, and with Ali Brice’s new show Bin Wondering , diamonds are a plenty. Bin Wondering is a brilliant, hilarious and absurdly heart-wrenching story of Ali Brices simple quest to stay warm in a bin, and how he got there. In Brice’s heartfelt and earnest exploration of his previous issues with alcoholism zany characters are aplenty and his likeability is contagious, I can’t wait to see what he does next. Check out more info over on his website - https://www.alibrice.com
Craig Unadkat
Death of a Salesman
Death of a salesman wasn’t simply a show to me. It was a masterclass in what a show can be when everything fits together perfectly. Gorgeous, understated direction. Incredible music and singing. Beautiful set design. Perfect theatrical lighting and of course, absolutely phenomenal acting. This is how you make theatre.
Death of a Salesman is on at the Piccadilly Theatre until the 4th Jan - https://tinyurl.com/rukkplv
Tiffany Haddish
Goldilocks and the Three Bears
The best show I have seen this year is 'Goldilocks and the Three Bears' at the London Palladium (still currently playing there until the 12th January). With incredible sets, effects and an all-star cast led by Paul O'Grady and Julian Clary, it really is a grand panto experience like no other.
Tickets to this production are available here - https://www.palladiumpantomime.com
Amy Mawer
Medea Electronica
Medea Electronica, by Pecho Mama, was not only one of the best pieces I’ve seen all year, but honestly one of the best pieces I’ve seen in a long time. I luckily had the pleasure of catching it at The Pleasance Courtyard at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival this Summer. It was an incredibly moving retelling of the ancient Greek tragedy, with Mella Faye playing Medea herself, accompanied by multiple voice overs to create the rest of the cast. The whole piece is backed with this 1980s inspired rock concert, with Mella Faye on lead vocals, and Sam Cox and Alex Stanford on the drums and keyboards. It’s a very surreal experience and an amazing blur between music and theatre. It had me laughing, crying, and giving a standing ovation at the end. Pecho Mama are definitely a collective to keep your eyes on, and you can see more about their work here: https://www.pechomama.co.uk
Theo Moore
Paul Currie: Trufficle Musk
My favourite show I saw this year was Trufficle Musk by endlessly energetic clownedian (clown comedian (?)) Paul Currie. I saw Currie perform for the first time in 2018, his show, Hot Donkey, was the finest hour of comedy I’d ever seen. This year his show was the first I booked, and yet again I was captivated by the wild imagination of this wonderful man. When you go to Edinburgh you are aware of many stand up comedians, they stand at the mic retelling witty observations about modern life, you might expect some to push the boat out and sing a song or dance a dance, maybe the brave will play some extra characters. What you don’t expect, is anything Currie does. To spoil one of his jokes would not be to give away a simple punchline, to spoil one of Currie’s jokes you would have to describe in detail exactly what went on, and more often than not that’s actually quite difficult. ‘He throws knives into the crowd’, ‘He fucking does what?’ - It’s funny, trust me. From wonderfully inventive moments of audience participation, to ingenius puppet creations, to an inspiring speech about the liquid notions of gender, Currie has his audience in the palms of his furry panda hands. Go and see everything he ever does. You won’t regret it.
Trufficle Musk is on at the Angel Comedy Club, Sunday 26th January, tickets available here - https://www.angelcomedy.co.uk/event-detail/54963013/
