With over 500 shows Fringe is always going to prove to be a
little hit and miss. You’ll see some fabulous performances and every now and
then there’ll be a dud or two. I’ve seen quite a few wonderful ones this
festival which means I’m pretty much batting ahead of the curve. I don’t state
it lightly then that for sheer entertainment value Skin Deep is my favourite
show to date. What a fantastically crazy and hilarious mash-up of mashed up pop
songs and insight into the quest for beauty through the ages!
When the answer to “what price beauty?” comes in the form of botox, arsenic, insect larvae, nightshade and other remedies you know you’re in
for a helluva ride. Throw in some creative interpretations of a variety of pop
songs (I’ll never hear The Eagles' Take It Easy the same way ever again) with a
few, um, judicious tweaks here and there to the lyrics and it’s a rollicking
night’s entertainment. I’m known for having a big laugh but the lady next to me
was literally having kittens. Yes, literally! In fact the whole audience loved
this with a standing ovation at the Hellenic Club after a suitable finale with
a Carole King classic.
The set-up is that three generations of beauty therapists
(all the most important jobs end in ‘ist’) reveal the secrets of the trade with
several ‘exhibits’, Law and Order style. They range from invasive beauty
procedures to client confessions to mother-daughter wrangling over the school ball with a little
murder thrown in for good measure. The performers in question are Lindsay
McNab, Cynthia Fenton (also co-writer), and Grace Edwards with the seemingly
ever present Timothy How on keyboards.
They work tremendously well together with each getting a
moment to shine. A sense of what we were in for arrives early when the three
women excel during ‘Exhibit A’ that involves plenty of sight gags as ‘Lins’
undergoes a certain delicate beauty treatment. Other highlights included:
Fenton gives a whole new meaning to the song Defying Gravity
which was as inspired as anything you’ll see at Fringe this year and had me
laughing from How’s opening bars.
Edwards, hard on the heels of The Dummies Guide to Opera,
gives another vivacious performance with standouts including her turn as a put
upon 17 year old railing against her domineering mother (Fenton); and who could
go past that classic piece of shtick I’ve Never Been To Me for comic potential?
McNab had a beautiful ballad as the mood surprisingly turned
a little sombre towards the end. It was an interesting counterpoint and I liked
that they took their time here. Additionally, her opening refrain from Bohemian
Rhapsody was a prime example of taking the lyrics from a famous song and
twisting the context for maximum comedic effect. Which is exactly what How’s
Mack the Knife does as cosmetic surgery comes under the satirical knife of
writers Fenton and Tyler Jacob Jones.
Jones, who also directs, is the writer of that other impressive Fringe piece currently on, F**k Decaf, one of the stars of which was happily
chortling along with the rest of us. Skin Deep has all of his trademark wit and
is staged with style and energy.
What elevates this though is that beneath the
hilarity there is very perceptive commentary on the beauty industry from all
kinds of different angles. This gives it great resonance as it highlights how
crazy the pursuit of beauty can sometimes be. There is a positive message at
the end, however, that dovetails nicely with the singing of classic pop songs
from artists such as The Go-Gos, Cyndi Lauper, ABBA, Katy Perry, and Mike and the
Mechanics.
Skin Deep is well performed with deft comic timing and
inventive use of songs. The singing is strong with Edwards the standout but they
are all terrific in the numerous set-pieces. Timothy How is excellent on
keyboards and gets to appropriately ham it up as required.
Above all this is
thoroughly entertaining and a hilarious exploration of an industry that has
been around in one form or another for centuries. A must see but hurry, there
is only one more performance left this Sunday at 7pm.
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