Presented by Steve Sheehan
Reviewed Friday 11 February 2011
http://www.adelaidefringe.com.au
http://www.gardenofunearthlydelights.com.au
http://stevesheehan.com
Venue: The Campanile, The Garden of Unearthly Delights, Rundle Park, Adelaide
Season: 11-13, 15-27 Feb, 1-13 Mar at 9pm
Tickets: $23.00/$19.00 Cheap Tuesdays: $17.00
Duration: 50 mins
Bookings: FringeTix 1300 FRINGE (374 643) or http://www.adelaidefringe.com.au
Following Stevl Shefn is like following the branches of a tree. Every turn of thought is a new discovery that cuts across the path of where you thought you were heading.
Comedian Steven Sheehan’s oddball comedy is breathtakingly bizarre and all the more funny because of it. Dressed in tweed and rambling in some presumably Eastern European-sounding gibberish, Stevl recounts his memoirs of hermaphrodite lovers, swinging cats and his mother’s adult book shop. The character is a loveable rogue, albeit clearly insane.
In complete contrast to the animated storytelling, Stevl’s translator, Fatima (Emma Beech), stands to one side interpreting his unintelligible nonsense with as much dispassion as Stevl’s current girlfriend, a vacuum cleaner. Hidden behind a burqa, the irony is not lost that we can hear but not see her, whereas we see Stevl but can’t, in a sense, hear him.
Sheehan’s absurdist humour is delivered with all the sincerity of deadpan American comedian Stephen Wright. The dialogue is a remarkable feat, turning the world on its head and viewing it inside out. The delivery is impeccable, from both Sheehan and Beech, making it an engaging, laugh-out-loud comedy for adults.
Reviewed by Rod Lewis, Performing Arts Critic, Glam Adelaide.
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