Munfred Bernstein's Cabinet of Wonder: Fringe 2012
Live Review
Gilded Balloon Teviot

There’s a sozzled elegance to Jamie Bowen’s eccentric gentleman of the road; a romantic notion of the minstrel who travels the globe with his collection of treasures. His is a world of sideshows, artifacts and emporiums that throw back to the time of Victorian adventurers.

This hour won the ‘best show concept’ award at the comedy festival in his native New Zealand, and as he dryly notes, this is code for a show that’s actually rubbish, but based on a good idea.

That would be harsh, but there’s still a inescapable feeling that the script doesn’t do justice to an engaging and original comic persona.

In this borderline cabaret, stand-up and character show, he talks us through his travels through song, story and demonstrations such as the sepia photographs carefully mounted in his oversized album. But the leaps in time and place don’t amount to a particularly fascinating or coherent story, just whimsical vignettes of Australian wise men, an obsession with a woman that tips over to stalking, or that first call for everyone seeking a dream-like surrealism: the midget.

‘If you’re not a fan of the ukulele, then boy have you come to the wrong show,’ Bernstein tells us at the start – which might prompt walkouts given the instrument’s ubiquity at this, and every other, Fringe.  But the songs turn out to be a strength, possibly down to the influence of director Jesse Griffin, best known for his pastiche country singer Wilson Dixon. Highlights including an inappropriate romantic ballad and a blues parody in which electronic wizardry transforms the uke into a fuzzy guitar.

Bowen’s an engaging performer, and there’s an enchanting twinkle in his eye as he regales the audience with this tallest of tall tales. But ultimately – despite the  occasional funny line or  idea – it doesn’t stack up to a great deal more than a reasonable diversion.