A one of a kind whodunnit comedy
This sell-out Edinburgh show comes to Soho for a weekend in this comedic whodunnit show.
New York, 1940’s, Gumshoe is on his last case-his most deadly one yet. In solving the case, he is reunited with an old lover and an old friend. The details of the case are in the hands of the audience allowing the fourth wall to be broken and almost creating a living piece of work, in some respects. And a Friday night in Soho, anything can happen.
Other characters are a voiceover, with minimal props and two chairs for the set used as a car and part of a museum display set up for an audience member to steal a gem. The use of sound effects was often used for comedic value and several songs with police in the title or about them, brings this show to life.
This performance is heavy on the audience participation, which I am starting to enjoy, though I’m not sure how I’d feel about being dragged up on stage (which is what happened and the audience member became the client in need of Gumshoes expertise). What I can imagine this does, is keep the material fresh which is interesting as it is quite reactive to how an audience is on the night and sets it apart from other detective and comedy shows. This approach also showcases how funny the performer is and with audience participation, there inevitably was a moment of borderline heckling which the performer dealt with in a humorous manner, incorporating it into the show.
Full of puns, jokes that didn’t land as expected and audience engagement (giving the front row members water guns was a brave move) I spent pretty much the entire show in stitches. It was clear that the performer has dabbled in improv which works for this style of performance as something heavily scripted would not have the same appeal and in breaking the fourth wall, it offers a different experience of a show.
I can’t fault this show, I was impressed with the format and amazed at the talent of the performer and the many roles his sister plays in bringing the show to the stage. It did feel like it dipped a little in the middle but that could have just been me after a long week. And after a long week, an hour of silliness and laughter was needed. If you manage to come across another performance of this, go, it really is one of a kind.