In his own way, and by committing so spectacularly to his mission to save an inanimate collection of orange-bound books from extinction, Starr made some of us question what we’re really trying to “save” nowadays. And whether we’re having any fun doing it.
In a classic Fringe fumble, a concert of Holst’s “The Planets” ran overtime, preventing me from seeing Garry Starr perform his newest show Classic Penguins at its first Fringe venue. But, in retrospect, it was perhaps meant to be, because seeing the show at its second Fringe venue at the grand McEwan Hall – where it migrated mid-Fringe due to popular demand – was insane.
This was not the Gaulier-trained clown Garry Starr’s first go at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, and it showed. In this rowdy, anything-is-possible evening of full-frontal comedy, Damien Warren-Smith let us ride on his hilarious coattails… and sometimes sniff at what lay underneath them.
Often, the show leaned a bit too heavily on the proximity-to-his-cock-and-balls fun. Did he need to crowdsurf as far as he did across the audience? But then again, did the audience need to be that effusively happy to help him crowdsurf, naked, over them?
There’s definitely something to be said for witnessing Starr’s ingenious ability to muster the support, love, and participation of his audience. The energy he created in the auditorium clearly did not just come from the fact that he’d made sure everyone had a good view. Starr is a born talent when it comes to clowning. You just want to keep cheering him on, no matter how dirty his proposals.
And somehow, his mission to save a shelf of Penguin Classic paperbacks “from extinction” by acting each one out (even if it only went as far as the title) somehow had tangible resonances with the climate crisis, a feat in and of itself. Those resonances weren’t enough to make me think deeply about human responsibility for the environment, per say. But, in his own way and by committing so spectacularly to his mission to save an inanimate collection of orange-bound books from extinction, Starr made hopefully some of us question what we’re really trying to “save” nowadays. And whether we’re having any fun doing it.
If anything, a good clown will send you home with a light reminder that life is really absurd, and sometimes (if you ask nicely), just one naked crowdsurf away from a day well-spent. Let’s just say, I was very happy I could reschedule.
Garry Starr: Classic Penguins was a part of the 2025 Edinburgh Festival Fringe and played until 24 August. More info here: https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/garry-starr-classic-penguins