Charming semi-historical absurdity from two New Zealanders in togas. They mime, pun and fantasise their way between pairs of characters – Constantine and his DJ slave, or an insecure horse and his masseur. Their timing is impressive, and the show spectacularly ends with They Might Be Giants’ ‘Istanbul’, sharing its gleeful anachronism. The non sequitur structure is mostly brilliant – the narrator is marked out from other characters only by his wearing a tie, made of newspaper, a sign, an asp, or a sheet). The Conversion of Constantine (in the world’s first disco, ‘Studio LIV’) is overlong, and Barnie Duncan’s Mediterranean accent is sometimes dodgy, but on the whole, this is wonderful, unpretentious postmodern slapstick.

Electric Circus, 5 – 29 Aug, times vary, free, fpp251.
tw rating 4/5
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Sections: by Gavin Leech - ED2011 Theatre Reviews - tw rating 4/5 | Tags: Electric Circus, Theatre Beating

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