Sandro Monetti’s show Clooney, Cowell, Pitt and Me: Amusing Encounters With the A-List does more or less what it says on its somewhat over-titled tin. The degree to which you’ll enjoy his one-hour show largely depends on how much you enjoy the circus of celebrity around a group of familiar personalities and also your willingness to pay good money to hear gossip you could probably find fairly easily on any number of relevant online resources.
Of course, all of this could have been saved by a compelling stage presence or a well-crafted routine; unfortunately it seems like as little thought has been put into Monetti’s on-stage patter as into that clunker of a title. Monetti doesn’t seem like a natural storyteller, or at least hasn’t spent enough time practicing for his one-off show at the Merchant’s Hall. His stories are often remarkably dull given the promising source material, and rather lacking in the kind colour or narrative flourish that could really bring them to life.Monetti is by no means a terrible performer, and clearly loves his job, but this show simply didn’t translate well onto the stage.
