Review: EDINBURGH 2024: STAMPTOWN, Pleasance Courtyard

“I'm feelin' like a star, you can't stop my shine / I'm lovin' cloud nine, my head's in the sky”

As someone who has seen versions of Stamptown in both Edinburgh and London, I was very much looking forward to seeing the show at the 2024 Edinburgh Festival Fringe in the Pleasance Courtyard - Grand, a 750-seat venue. Zach Zucker hosts the show as Jack Tucker, a comedian who’s been doing standup for “forty-five years” and is constantly referring to his wife, tapping his wedding ring with the microphone when audience members cheer at him.

If you had the pleasure of seeing Jack Tucker: Comedy Standup Hour, you are going to see some familiar faces including Dylan Woodley skating around during the preshow and Jonathan Dely giving a stunning performance on the trumpet. Zucker continues his partnership with Jonny Wooley on sound, who does a fantastic job of keeping up with and matching the jokes throughout the show.

Viggo Venn appeared for a minute or so before running to another show, never to return. Marshall Arkley, a Stamptown regular, leaves the audience in shock as he whips and strips, including an incredible final act where he sets his penis on fire. It’s an intense act but also the perfect way to introduce people to the world of Stamptown - yes, this is what this show is, and it is not afraid to show it. Zaki Musa gives a fantastic aerial pole dance performance that honestly left me in awe of how talented they are. It does feel slightly out of place in comparison to the comedians but is adds some nice variety to the show as a whole.

If you’ve seen any of the Stamptown-produced shows at the Fringe, there is a good chance that you are going to see some material again. In my case, I had seen Huge Davies’s solo show, Album for My Ancestors (Dead), and Michelle Brasier’s show, Legacy, I had already heard their sets but, luckily, they are both brilliant performers and it was just as fun seeing them the second time as it was the first. An exception to this was Erin Farrington, who plays the exasperated stage manager, flustered at the attention she receives from the crowd whenever she goes on stage to scold Zucker or one of the other acts. Her bit is completely different from her solo show, Think Better: Manifesting Money, Real Estate and Hot People.

The comedy duo BriTANicK, Brian McElhaney and Nick Kocher, made a brief appearance as what appeared to be two young people in a trenchcoat pretending to be a grown adult, which grew funnier as McElhaney started to struggle to keep Kocher up on his shoulders, leading to several near misses. Martin Urbano plays a critic who is live-reviewing the show, coming onto the stage between acts and reading his notes from each performance. It is a short but hilarious bit and, had I been writing a negative review of Stamptown, I would have been taking notes from Urbano!

As always, one of the highlights for me is Steffan Hånes, dressed up as a vampire named “The Master,” randomly appearing around the venue. One could argue that a venue like the Grand is not the best choice for Stamptown - indeed, the energy is much different in this larger venue than others like Soho Theatre and Pleasance Forth.

In my two years of going to the Fringe, I have yet to see a show that is able to match the energy that could be provided by a 750-seat venue, regardless of how good their performance is. Stamptown comes very close, especially when performers are running up and down the aisles and making use of the space, but the stage itself feels a bit empty in comparison when only one or two people are performing. 

A key thing if you are thinking about attending a Stamptown show - the runtime has no meaning and the show will continue on until it has reached what it decides to be the end. Even after a delayed start the show’s runtime ended up being nearly two hours instead of its set ninety minutes - my thoughts are with the Pleasance team cleaning up after!

Stamptown has been and continues to be one of the best nights of comedy in the world - not just Edinburgh, but even a show that great struggles in a large venue. But, even in a place like the Grand, Stamptown is still a fantastic show - just don’t make any plans for right afterwards!

Stamptown ran until 24 August at Pleasance Courtyard - Grand.

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