Low Down

A Night On The Town by the abandontheatre company consisted of three parts, a sketch show, a stand up comic and then improvisation along the lines of Whose Line Is It Anyway. The two intervals were short, just enough time to grab a drink from Po Na Na's bar (the place feels a little like the set of Aladdin or the Arabian Knights), and to fill in bits of paper with scenario suggestions.

Review

I loved the therapist sketches in the first act, initially worried that the stand up was going to suck, though in the event Mackenzie Taylor had most of the audience creased up in a pain (some profanity here but artisitcally justified!), and I loved the improv. Obviously mileage will vary because the nature of improvisation is that you are never going to see the same show twice, but you know that already! The young cast gelled well, clearly enjoyed their work and gave their all. The audience loved it.

Things that didn't work? It may have been the first night but the person in charge of the lighting evidently had not had any rehearsal time or experience with the lighting equipment. That has to be a one off, right? Not every sketch in the first act worked. I am bound to mention that on any first night some of the audience is going to consist of friends but, in the event, well over half of the audience were strangers who were clearly fans of the format. A spirited audience is always rewarding.

The short of it is... if you and your friends are a fan of sketch shows and of improv especially, which I am, I find it hard to imagine you won't find much to enjoy!

Reviewed by Andrew Grimley 06/08/07

Website :

www.abandontheatre.co.uk/