Friday 23 September 2011

10 Things I Know About You, Simon Taylor, Sep 23, 201


Comedy: 10 Things I Know About You, Simon Taylor ***
10 THINGS I KNOW ABOUT YOU, Simon Taylor, Butterfly at Trades, Melbourne Fringe Festival
Trades Hall, until Oct 8, 2011



Simon Taylor's one-hour solo show is a collage of styles and material that includes stand-up comedy, silly Michael Jackson dancing, stories, songs and one surprisingly successful magic trick. 

Taylor’s comedy draws on his fascination with psychology and human nature so his material covers the topics of morality, happiness, language and love.

He challenges us with our inconsistent morality and inner guilt related to donating to starving African children or paying those annoying windscreen cleaners at traffic lights.

He suggests that lowering our expectations leads to greater happiness then highlights our privileged, urban whining about unimportant issues in his song, First World Blues.

He shares his obsession with the versatility and complexity of language in a long, lyrical rave, then sings a witty love song that combines a romantic ballad with a list of chemical reactions that trigger our love feelings.

He promises, at the start, to tell us the 10 things he knows about us at the end of the show, and indeed he does not disappoint us with his final, cheeky insights.

Taylor’s show moves swiftly and efficiently, engaging us with his circuitous journey around the human psyche.

His performance style is brisk and formal, lacking some charm and humility, but his material is entertaining and varied.

Star rating: ***

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