Tom Clayton
Hilarious and smart – this show is incredibly carefully put together by the end it’s going to make you question everything you may ever see again. Lou Wall went viral earlier this year when she played the Melbourne International Comedy Gala with their Facebook Marketplace Musical. This shows tackles the aftermath of that performance.
If you haven’t seen the clip don’t worry, they perform a version for you at the top of the show to make sure everyone in the audience is up to speed. Lou then begins their signature style of multimedia stand up bombarding you early on with memes and clips. It’s fast paced and relentless, never giving you a second to stop from one moment to the next.
It’s from here that Lou begins to get into the theme of the show ahead. They discuss the fourth wall within performance and then what they believe to be the ‘fifth wall’., where anecdotes and stories start to blur the lines between truth and lies in the name of entertainment. Lou begins to break down anything we see and how nothing is ever really true. Presenting a series of videos to us, she begins to dismantle how all comedians lie.
The whole reason for this is Lou’s ongoing crisis about how much they want to lie to their audiences because Lou wants to be truthful but also knows that in order to make the show more entertaining and funnier they need to twist the truth. Lou plays with the audience, watching them doubt more and more everything they are seeing and told, all the while continuing to hit you with joke after joke.
Concluding the show, it feels as though Lou is finally letting you in on what is true and what is not, but as this continues you realise this is the final trick being played on you. Lou is excellent at navigating through you the themes putting you exactly where they want you at all times. Seeing the joy on Lou’s face as they realise you know where you’re going and what’s happening next shows just how much they are enjoying themselves on stage. When you see the performer enjoying themselves in a way that also offers nuance, you often can’t go wrong.
Hilarious, jam-packed and very clever, this show will leave beginning to question everything in the most fun way.
Recommended Drink: Something from home, don’t trust anything Lou provides.
You can catch Lou Wall: Breaking the Fifth Wall from August 13th to 24th at Monkey Barrel 2 at Monkey Barrel Comedy from 22:00 (60mins). Extra shows at Monkey Barrel 4 at Monkey Barrel on 13th August from 15:35, Pleasance Two at Pleasance Courtyard on 19th August from 20:00 and Pleasance Grand at Pleasance Courtyard on 22nd August from 15:30. Tickets are available through the EdFringe Online Box Office.
Jake Mace
Lamesha Ruddock
Jasmine Silk
