Special Feature: House Of Windsor And Limbo
Edinburgh, as a comedy destination, can mean many things for performers. It can be a homecoming of sorts, with artists returning to live stand-up, as TV personalities Frank Skinner and Sean Hughes are doing this year; it can be a fun holiday or more trying testing-ground for the swathes of student comics every year; it can simply be another gig for the wearied career journeyman. For many, however, it is the ultimate chance to be noticed, picked up by top promoters, and a springboard to a successful job, bypassing the long slog up to fame through pubs and clubs. Young talent is always on offer, and will be seen by reviewers, as well as punters, who would not normally venture near these unproven hopefuls. Part of the joy of returning to the Fringe year after year is seeing acts develop, become popular, and make it to the big time – I saw Russell Howard four or five years ago, and now he’s a regular on Mock the Week, and remains one of the funniest shows in town.
It was with this in mind that I went to see the young sketch trio House of Windsor. All Cambridge graduates, they have worked with one another in various acts and revues for the past few years before uniting to write this show – a series of vignettes of ordinary people in slightly odd situations, carried to often illogical extremes. I caught up with them afterwards. We went together to see Limbo, a one-woman play at the Underbelly, then talked about both very different shows.
____
When taken together, both onstage and off, it becomes quickly apparent that the three guys in House of Windsor are hugely comfortable with one another, and this translates into a relaxed fluency of performance which sets the tone perfectly for their fresh, understated approach to sketch comedy. Jonny Sweet, playing a lovable but confused buffoon in many segments, reminds me that real conversations rarely end with punchlines, which is evident in their material, and makes for a surprisingly different type of laughter. It is not a single uproarious ending that they aim for, and they consciously steer away from obvious or overly absurd setups.
This approach, paradoxically, comes across as both intriguingly original and different from the norm, but at the same time contains a Radio 4 style of quaintness which is altogether endearing. The group, after telling me that they aim to appeal to a young adult audience, then reported that they had had an equally brilliant response from a crowd “the age of our parents” at a Pick of the Fringe slot that afternoon, which they had found surprising.
Simon Bird, who was a 2006 Chortle Student Comic of the Year finalist, and conveys perfectly his variously annoying, officious and stuck-up characters, says that the style is rewarding for “anyone who’s willing to give it a bit of time”. It is consistently chuckle-worthy rather than hysterical at points, and the characters, all fairly-well drawn – though not always perfect – give everyday interactions a touch of familiar strangeness. Social barriers sometimes drop in just the right places, and as the guys put it, many sketches can be read as “passive/aggressive people – who are all at odds with the situation, and themselves – finally speaking about things.” The third member, the delightfully-played victim of many scenarios (or else the weird instigator), Joe Thomas, describes the tone of the performance well when he says it has “a twinkle in the eye”. Watching small lives unravelling in silly ways, such as the Legoland staff member who sells out the concept of the park when bought off with Lego dollars is a typically restrained British voyeurism. I can’t imagine this show working with an American audience, but perhaps that’s why I like it so much.
Other sketches that worked particularly well were Portrait, where a group of three friends realize that they’re not as close as they thought when one suggests a professional photographer commemorates their bond, Colonel Fuzz, about a bear who stayed out too late and forgot to hibernate, and Birds, a marital dispute between two nest-building sparrows.
It is true that a few moments could use a bit of polish, and two pieces did slightly extend their welcome, but this is a show that you’ll definitely leave with a smile on your face, provided that you don’t think that Little Britain is the be-all and end-all of sketch comedy, and you appreciate the humour inherent in idiosyncrasies and foibles of daily life. Plus, if the style catches on, you may well be boasting to friends in a few years’ time that you saw these guys in a small cave under the streets of Edinburgh, and that smugness, my friends, is a valuable resource.
___
So, what they think of Limbo? It was, in their opinion, a masterclass in subtlety and simplicity. RADA-trained director Dan Sherer had taken Declan Feenan’s poignant script about pregnancy, life and the ease with which it becomes complicated, and let it speak for itself. Despite the complete contrast of styles, the appeal of the play to the House of Windsor boys was, I think, in the specific treatment of a life, and the attention to detail. It focused on the minutiae of a night out on the town, a drive in a car, or a bed – and with such intense scrutiny as to render the account not only believable, but completely absorbing. Details are what make up a life, no matter how much Hollywood has taught us to yearn for grand narratives, unambiguous conclusions, and simple meanings.
The stellar delivery of the monologue by professional newcomer Caroline Williamson was praised as being intense, compelling, and gripping. What impressed all three was the stillness with which the entire piece was delivered; whilst many directors would be tempted to force movement into any play (to keep it “dramatic”), they were captivated by the plainly-told tale despite Williamson never moving from the same spot.
The atmosphere of the room was definitely felt to enhance the production too, with a barely-noticeable sound of wind rising and falling, and dulled ghostly light reflected by gentle water ripples to create the desired sensation of an empty, cold, sterile place. As far as I and the House of Windsor boys were concerned, there was very little wrong with Limbo, and we would both recommend it.
___
House of Windsor is on at the Underbelly Delhi Belly until 26 August at 17.10.
Limbo is on at the Underbelly Iron Belly until 26 August at 14.20
