In Reading, a shady man is walking the streets, dealing toys. Sex toys. The competition is Glen and Mims recently opened shop, Tits for Tat, which sells new and used sex toys. When a huge black antique dildo goes missing, and becomes the weapon in a series of gruesome murders and everyone is implicated. The singing strap-on (aka Adam D. Felman in the corner playing a piano with a strap-on at a jaunty angle on his head) provides atmospheric music behind many of the monologues, and is a dead-pan presence throughout. Lester, the romantic necrophiliac, Mrs Tibbs the blind old ex-pornstar, and Toad the nervous conman, are presented well, with conviction and excellent comic timing with the audience so close, and laughing in their faces, it is admirable that the actors managed to keep straight faces - most of the time. Alex Whyman was great as the timid Lester, and his song, Dead girls dont say no, is a definite highlight of the show. Glasseye (Dino Kazamia), the gun-happy American detective sent to set Thames Valley Police straight, is an energetic, powerful presence onstage, engaging directly with the audience and comic chiefly for his brilliant parody of the typical TV American detective. Being so short, the storyline is quite simple and underdeveloped, and at times feels more like an extended sketch than a play, or a series of comic character portraits. For what it is though, it is good, and provides light evening entertainment before going out for more drinks. It was sold-out when I went to see it, and the audience seemed to love it. Despite the toys, this is no show for all the family, though it is a lot of fun.
