EDINBURGH 2016 - Review: A LADY'S GUIDE TO THE ART OF BEING A WINGMAN, Gilded Balloon, 11 August

A Lady's Guide To The Art of Being A Wingman is a tongue-in-cheek look at women employing the pick-up techniques used by men. Dressed in suits and pink beehive wigs, they begin with songs that are traditionally sung by men such as "Blurred Lines", "She Bangs" and "Uptown Funk".

This is quite a late show, running from 11.30pm for an hour, so audience numbers aren't huge. The Desperettes ended up performing to a small yet enthusiastic crowd, and all three male members of the audience were utilised for the show. One gent in particular got a little too enthusiastic, but the performers dealt with that very well.

The show takes place on a night out as the trio try and arrange dates for their friends. Using dance techniques and cheesy chat-up lines, they attempt to go home with someone at the end of the night. It's a fun piece and the musical performances are pretty good.

The highlight for me was a slower song, an a cappella rendition of Imogen Heap's "Hide and Seek". The night was rounded off with a brilliant medley of diva anthems such as "Survivor", "Independent Women", "Fergalicious", "Don't Cha" and "I'm Every Woman". The comedy in A Lady's Guide To The Art Of Being A Wingman is a bit hit or miss, but it makes for a fun and silly show.

A Lady's Guide To The Art Of Being A Wingman runs at the Gilded Balloon until 28 August.

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