Aggie Elsdon: Crone Alone

Note: This review is from 2006

Review by Steve Bennett

The eccentric single aunt is a well-known comic stereotype, but in this free afternoon show Aggie Elsdon talks about how it is to live that life. Or at least, that's supposedly the theme of the show, but it really just provides a jumping-off point for Elsdon's material on all manner of topics, from easyJet through the Olympics to Big Brother.

It's not the most innovative set list, and they're explored in a fairly ordinary fashion: the lines may be slightly different but you can't escape the feeling you've heard it all before, with Elsdon really failing to provide any sort of personal, 'crone-ish' spin on them.

Additionally her delivery is quite scattered, with a routine on flying confusing the audience to the extent that the punchline gets lost. The one real piece of material that fits with the theme of the show, that of a 'cloak of invisibility' envelopes anyone reaching middle age, rendering you unnoticed by the rest of society, is a decent enough observation but lacks the material to get any real laughs out it.

The theme of the show also provides a good excuse to bring two young, male guest comics on stage to each do ten minutes or so. Tonight, we were treated to Mike Mannera, who had some solid jokes though several of his observations didn't really ring true, and Jay Sodagar, who had some truly brilliant material on Virgin Trains.

Elsdon herself works well as a compere, her relaxed, laid-back manner and unchallenging material keeping the crowd amused and engaged between acts, but in a show where she is shouldering over half the stage time, the lack of any depth in her material becomes increasingly obvious. It's left to her guests to pick up the slack.

Dean Love

 

Review date: 1 Jan 2006
Reviewed by: Steve Bennett

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