Showstopper! review
Pleasance Courtyard - Grand
Edinburgh Festival Fringe August 2023
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Some kind of witchcraft!
When I'm reviewing at the Edinburgh Fringe I'm always mindful that I'm reviewing just that - Fringe Theatre. The majority of shows take place in small, temporary venues. None of them have big budgets, and sets need to be kept to a bare minimum to allow for a quick exit from the venue. I always judge an Edinburgh show based on what they have done with the elements that they can control: The performances, the book, the musical numbers, the tech.
‘Showstopper! The Improvised Musical’ is a little different: It's a well established show that comes to the festival direct from a West End residency at the Cambridge Theatre and a nationwide tour. The show has been playing in one format or another since 2008, and has even won an Olivier Award. It's fitting therefore that it plays at one of the biggest venues at The Fringe, the 750 seat Pleasance Grand.
Having seen their posters in Edinburgh over the years for one reason or another, I have never made it to their show. I always thought it was just another improvised musical, that I wasn't really missing anything... Well, I popped my 'Showstopper!' cherry this weekend, and I can honestly say it was phenomenal!
The show is immaculately run and presented, the onstage band are brilliant, and the cast of actors are frankly, unbelievable. They present a full, 70 minute comedy musical, based entirely on audience suggestions - and it's completely different every night.
At the performance I saw, audience suggestions for the setting ranged from a pirate ship to Mars, but we eventually settled on a Cumbrian Hill farm. The musical styles to be incorporated were 'The Book of Mormon', 'Camelot', 'Kander and Ebb' and The Spice Girls. The title for the world premier of this fabulous new musical? Zig-a-zig Baa. Genius!
The live band sit at the side of the stage and they play fantastic musical theatre tunes with recognisable beats and riffs, and then somehow, implausibly, the cast spontaneously improvise lyrics and a storyline along with the tunes. It's remarkable. Throughout the show the onstage action is halted to allow for further audience input, and thanks to that, we soon found our cast heading towards Tebay services on the M6!
The cast cleverly incorporate small props and costumes to great effect. And the teasing between them as the show progresses and the stakes rise, is priceless. How they manage to bring the narrative arc full circle, to hit every plot point and finish the show in a suitable place, is some kind of witchcraft.
All I know is that I laughed my socks off and I clapped with glee for almost an hour and a half straight. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and if the standing ovation was anything to go by, I was certainly not alone. The cheering and the standing actually started about 5 minutes before the end of the show... the audience was ecstatic and so was I. My only regret is that it was a one-off; The magic of Zig-a-zig Baa has now been lost to Musical Theatre folklore forever.
Don't hesitate to see this group and this show. It's a marvel.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
When and Where?
Venue: The Pleasance Courtyard - Grand
Time: 9.10pm (runs 70 minutes)
Dates: 2nd - 27th August (except 15th August)
About Showstopper! The Improvised Musical
For those who haven’t yet experienced the live phenomenon that is ‘Showstopper! The Improvised Musical’, it is a fully-realised musical created live on the spot from audience suggestions. The cast take suggestions from the audience for the setting and musical styles and turn them into ingenious storylines, hilarious characters and stunning song and dance numbers. The audience also name that night’s show, which is added to The Showstoppers’ archive of more than 1,200 shows that they have performed since the show's inception in 2008.
So, whether it's a Broadway barnstormer or sophisticated Sondheim, whether it's set in an American high school, ancient Egypt or a coffee shop – if the audience suggests it, The Showstoppers will perform it!
The group are long running, well known and renowned for their improvisation work. Most cast members have also received acclaim in their own right. The Showstoppers have been working on the show since 2008, figuring out how to improvise in increasingly esoteric styles, musical, dance, straight theatre, and film genres to name but a few.
The show has been at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe for the past 13 years and now has a reputation as a ‘Must See’ Edinburgh Fringe show. In the Autumn of 2015, it became the first longform improv show to have a full run in the West End at the Apollo Theatre, followed by a 7-year residency at the Lyric Theatre, Shaftesbury Avenue before finding its new home at the Cambridge.
📸 Professional photos: Ray Burniston
🎟️ Disclosure: I am an Edinburgh Festival Fringe accredited media reviewer and as such I receive complimentary press tickets in exchange for my honest reviews. My reviews and star ratings are always my honest opinions.
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