REVIEW: Foriegner, Koan Brothers, EdFringe 2026 ★★★★

This is a performance that does not want to be performed. Iranian-American Sohrab Haghverdi rages against the narrative he has to play through, resenting the exploitation of his background for marketability.

It’s a visceral ride, stuffed with bodily fluid and emotion. Haghverdi grimaces through where he came from to where he is now in this ‘anti-identity’ clown piece. At times an uncomfortable watch, the show does succeed in its goal to disgruntle the audience and show us something hard to forget.

We see the artist’s life out of sequence and in the distorted clarity of an extremely high definition camera. Haghverdi makes it clear from the get go that this is a piece that is not meant to be easily understood or enjoyed. He doesn’t want it to be. Being ‘anti-identity’ also means rejecting simple narratives. Haghverdi gives the audience only snapshots into his life, his family, his body, and his philosophy. The complete narrative is only his.

This show seeks to shock us. The artist boldly declares they will drink their own urine, for real, by the end of the show. Why? To get an OB1 Visa for being a ‘genius artist’ of course. It then fixates, throughout, on products of the body and the body as product. Sohrab resents being seen as a political ‘token’, he resents his cultural identity being marketable content, he resents having to perform this very show. Because of this, there is a general sense of unease that sustains throughout the piece, the tension being briefly interrupted by gags and physical comedy. Haghverdi’s clown is deeply connected to the baser urges, it is free and disconnected from the role of performer, or rather the expectations of a performer.

Underlining the bizarre antics, is the central philosophical theme of Rumi’s call to kill ones false self. The artist presents the audience with many ways to view the piece, but this is perhaps the most salient. The artist urges us to forget ourselves, forsake our identities and labels, giving up whatever superiority they may lend us.The olympics of taboo acts becomes this performer’s ‘death’, although at times it feels as though the comedy is too far removed from the passion to really hit. Then again, this is also an ‘anti-comedy’ clown show. It is a provocative piece, heavy in it’s anger at being performed. Certainly, the audience may not delighted, but will be left considering what the cost of art truly is and how our identities constrict us.

Foriegner is an unforgettable piece, if unpleasant. It feels more like performance art than clown, and certainly has a lot of passion within it. It is like if ‘Waiting for Godot’ and ‘American Pie’ merged into a clown show. This is a provocative show, raising big questions and challenging the audience to witness it.

Recommended Drink: Cloudy Lemonade on the condition that you have a strong stomach.

Catch Foriegner from 6th to the 31st August (excluding 18th and the 25th) at 19.00 (1 hr). Tickets are available through the EdFringe box office.