There’s something quite magical about the human form really. Not just the physical form of course but the very essence of it. It’s in the shared experiences we all go through together, in the company of strangers who very quickly become friends.
Garry Starr: Classic Penguin, created by Damien Warren-Smith and directed by Cal McCrystal, is an evening of theatrical chaos, literary reference and that very special kind of human connection which you can’t quite put your finger on but which you know is there and which you take away with you.
Garry Starr: Classic Penguin‘s concept is straightforward but very well done. A single (naked) performer takes us on a whirlwind tour of the great Penguin classics (Moby Dick, Little Women, The Invisible Man etc.), summarising and skewering them with a smile and a wink, and with the full support of the audience.
There’s a magic in the vulnerability that Warren-Smith brings to the stage (both in terms of the physical and the emotional). The physical comedy is unashamed and there is nudity, but it’s so perfectly executed that the element of embarrassment is completely transformed into a sense of liberation. As they say, a naked woman is drama, a naked man is comedy and Garry Starr is comedy in spades. Every bit of the absurd is packed with the right amount of wit and the audience ends up in on the fun of it all.
Each moment is better lived than described.
This isn’t just a clown in a lonely room. The audience is absolutely vital to the show. Their laughter, their participation, is what really provides the energy. The night I was there the room was absolutely buzzing with a sense of shared willingness to just go along with the absurdity of it all. Warren-Smith is a master of timing, his childlike impulses absolutely infectious and his sense of play is what creates the sense of community where you really do feel you can just let go.
The technical bits (particularly the sound operator’s cheeky cues, wish I could say their name but I can’t find it anywhere) are a further source of comedy and McCrystal’s direction means the literary references never feel like they’re in any way out of place. Each of the classics is treated with care and the references are just obscure enough to be a treat for the well-read, yet broad enough for all to enjoy.
In the end Garry Starr: Classic Penguin is more than just a spoof of great literature; it’s a celebration of the odd, the bizarre, the utterly human. Take it with an open mind (and your phone in your pocket), and you’ll be walking out of the theatre with the distinct impression that we’re all just little princes out there looking for a crack to be set free.
Listings and ticket information can be found here
