Conway's Time of the Month - Review

I am hoping that this review will begin a new culture of arriving fashionably early – arriving at Concrete at Pizza East on Thursday for Conway’s Time of the Month dead on half 7 for the opening of the door meant that as you walked in, you had the ability to sit anywhere, get straight to the bar or meet the comedians sat in the corner by the stage. Even though very few people were there, the atmosphere was already buzzing and you could just tell it was going to be a good night.

I was not wrong.

As the show is celebrating its first birthday, the venue was decorated with balloons and glitter which gave it a relaxed yet exciting party atmosphere as soon as you walked. However, I think this would be true of any room this show would be hosted in; with dance anthems playing and the beautiful host Eleanor Conway constantly walking around and chatting with audience members, you feel involved before the show even begins.

The seating’s layout is all close to the stage so even those at the back are still visible to the comedians, making it impossible to escape being dragged into conversation at some point in the night, willingly or otherwise. This is great though because it makes each night totally unique and vaguely reminiscent of a tamer Late ‘n’ Live. My one criticism of the venue, and perhaps of the night in general, is that whilst the main idea of the evening is audience interaction, the way in which the seating is laid out means that groups tend to stay secular where as it could be changed around to allow for conversation between everyone which could add to the friendly atmosphere and make people feel more comfortable in sharing secrets an anecdotes, not that any encouragement seemed particularly necessary.

Eleanor Conway acts as both an excellent talk show host and hilarious comedian, really encouraging you to talk without creating pressure or expectation and has the brilliant ability improvise with whatever is said, keeping you laughing at things you never realised were funny. Her discussions with the acts after their sets are entertaining and interactive and help stitch the show together.

First act of the evening, Eric Lampaert, is rather like a French Russell Brand; his quirky, bordering on metrosexual, appearance fits well with his style of comedy. Weaving in his cultural heritage with observation and audience interaction, Lampaert’s genre of comedy is accessible to a diverse range of people which is great at bringing the crowd together.

Ed Gamble’s set was highly entertaining and a brilliant example of how each night is totally different as well as proving his ability to improvise and deal with heckling in a way that is entertaining for the rest of the audience though unfortunately this meant that a large portion of his set had to be abandoned. However, Gamble kept the audience both on side and laughing throughout.

Rob Beckett’s style makes a great change from the standard self-deprecating stance taken by most comedians. Instead he uses family anecdotes and observation about things that everyone can relate to, making the audience feel included. His set was smooth and seemed well-rehearsed which is particularly impressive as all the material was new.

Finally, Sara Pascoe finished the evening with excellent new material in her usual observational style. As a female comedian, she doesn’t find herself trapped by this as many do and comments on life and society in a way that it can be observed by either gender, making her hilarious and leaving the audience wanting more.

All in all, an excellent gig with a great blend of side-splitting sets and eccentric audience interaction that will leave you laughing the whole way home.

Comedy Central Live Stand Up at The Vault

It must be awkward playing a gig in front of a small crowd of University students; this probably isn’t aided when the necessity to begin a show by asking the audience to move towards the stage arises, but this evening’s compere Marlon Davis certainly made it work for him. However, his initial success diminished slightly as the audience was incredibly hesitant to interact. Of course this is often the case when warming up a crowd, but it seemed to knock his confidence slightly as pauses between sections began to feel hesitant and even a little awkward.

Over time though, Davis’ performance gained momentum through his use of relatable anecdotes and a few well researched and executed snipes about the area along with his friendly personality and appearance which he certainly knows how to use to great comic effect.

Matt Forde, of Talk Sport fame, had great presence on stage despite initial hesitance from the audience. His clear observational skill is weaved into fairly topical material in a way that makes even political-based remarks funny and accessible to all. Forde’s personal stories were also told in a way that made them hilarious even to those who might not have been able to fully relate as his honesty and openness allowed everyone to feel part of them.

Headliner, Josh Widdicombe (Live at the Apollo, 8 out of 10 Cats), blended both tried-and-tested and new material in his performance to great effect. Using his improvisation and observational skills, he delivered a set that was both personal to the audience and entertaining in a way that would be appealing to anyone. His normal smoothness, however, was diminished by his lack of links between each section of his new material but this created its own comedy that kept up the great energy his performance provided.

In all, a hilarious and well received show by three clearly talented comedians.