Reviewer: Daniel Shipman
Upstaged Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Veteran comedy theatre troupe Told by an Idiot are no strangers to physical comedy, creating inventive, energetic live performances since 1993. They state that their work aims to ‘inhabit the space between laughter and pain’, and so there is seemingly no better fit for their work than the lives of dual showbusiness legends of Charlie Chaplin and Stan Laurel. Whilst they are renowned for hilarity, there is pain behind the public persona – Chaplin’s mother was admitted to an asylum in whilst he was still a child.
This one act, silent movie-style performance is based on a boat journey the two took together before they became international stars but is based more on playful fiction than strict fact. The company uses this as a springboard for comedic vignettes pulled from the past and future of the two performers, with inventive and impressive transitions between the ‘present’ and the flashbacks/forwards.
Certain sections of the show do run too long without a specific gag, which gives the show the air of a showcase of the cast’s considerable musical and physical talent rather than a cohesive comedy. A stricter edit of the material would reduce the running time to something slightly more tolerable and improve the overall flow. That said, I cannot deny the pleasure which is to be found in watching Amalia Vitale’s impeccably observed Chaplin explore the stage with that iconic walk.
The dry spells do little to detract from the high moments. Paul Hunter’s direction betrays his decades of experience as director and performer of first-class stage comedy and it perfectly suits the slapstick style of this piece.
For the most part, the way the company negotiates the lack of dialogue is ingenious but there were occasionally confused mumbles from an audience that was straining to keep track of the loose plot in the absence of dialogue. This doesn’t affect the final reception though, which is one of thunderous applause and appreciation.
Whilst the show might be flawed, it is an affectionate and utterly charming tribute to two era-defining greats of comedy.
-Daniel Shipman
The Strange Tale of Charlie Chaplin and Stan Laurel runs at HOME until Saturday 8 February 2020.