Elf Lyons

Elf Lyons

Nominated for the 2017 lastminute.com Edinburgh Comedy Award.
Read More

Elf Lyons: Horses

Edinburgh Fringe comedy review

Clown queen Elf Lyons has been making some well-deserved waves with her new, extremely Elfy show, in which she examines her family history through the lens of equine history… or vice versa maybe – and most of it’s done with mime and also Medusa is there.

So there’s quite a lot going on, which is one thing that makes Horses classic Elf, and it’s performed with a virtuosic physical ingenuity which only ccasionally feels like it’s pushing too hard and paddling too fiercely under the surface.

Lyons begins, already in character, by preparing us for the entrance of the horse performing the show, her haughty announcer telling us ‘it starts with a dance piece, The Birth Of The Horse’ – it’s VERY long.’ And it’s a very beautifully-done horse, although at this point, you might be getting ready for a rather stark hour of mime. 

Luckily, this horse can not only speak, it can act, taking on the roles of famous horses, mythical horses, imagined horses and horses that Elf Lyons may have once known in a series of sketches that make liberal use of music, mime and Lyons’ homemade foley effects. 

Her mimes bring the animals to life wonderfully and infuse them with distinct characters: the stroppy pubescent Pegasus, the naïve First World War horse about to be executed by his weeping owner, and the put-upon Shetland pony who might be murdering children.

Between the sketches, she sometimes snaps back into human form to act out voice recordings taken from interviews with her real-life mother, father and siblings. The whole effect is pleasingly polyphonic – you can feel her weaving different voices, tones and narratives into a greater whole: something that speaks about imagination and the role of the horse in how she learned to perform. 

It’s a sweet entreaty to the audience and to her siblings (who you get the sense are her real audience) to rediscover the playfulness of childhood, and if it doesn’t entirely skirt triteness it certainly feels genuine. Judging by the response, there are many people in the crowd who have clearly been champing at the bit to receive this message. 

Ambitious, brilliantly performed, sometimes very funny, this is the clearest and most personal synthesis yet of Lyons’ many talents.

Thanks for reading. If you find Chortle’s coverage of the comedy scene useful or interesting, please consider supporting us with a monthly or one-off ko-fi donation.
Any money you contribute will directly fund more reviews, interviews and features – the sort of in-depth coverage that is increasingly difficult to fund from ever-squeezed advertising income, but which we think the UK’s vibrant comedy scene deserves.
Read More

Published: 19 Aug 2024

Elf Lyons: Raven

Raven ends with the most remarkable scene, with performance…
25/08/2022

Elf Lyons: Swan

And now for something completely and utterly ludicrous.…
10/08/2017

Past Shows

Edinburgh Fringe 2014

Elf Lyons - Underground Success


Edinburgh Fringe 2015

Elf Lyons: Being Barbarella


Edinburgh Fringe 2016

Elf Lyons: Pelican


Edinburgh Fringe 2017

Elf Lyons: Swan


Edinburgh Fringe 2018

Elf Lyons: ChiffChaff


Edinburgh Fringe 2023

Elf and Duffy: Heist


Edinburgh Fringe 2024

Elf Lyons: Horses


Agent

We do not currently hold contact details for Elf Lyons's agent. If you are a comic or agent wanting your details to appear here, for a one-off fee of £59, email steve@chortle.co.uk.

We see you are using AdBlocker software. Chortle relies on advertisers to fund this website so it’s free for you, so we would ask that you disable it for this site. Our ads are non-intrusive and relevant. Help keep Chortle viable.