By its very name, Failure and How to Achieve It challenges both audiences and reviewers not to respond, ‘wow, that really is how to do it.’ Whilst the show is far short of a pocket guide to failure, neither, inevitably, is it a wholehearted rebuttal of its title. As we are later told, the show also has ‘nothing to do with cakes.’
Starting off with a nostalgic review of ‘the first half of the show,’ Failure sets itself a high standard to which it often struggles to return until the (genuine) second half of the show. Initially, humour oscillates rapidly through a chain of sketches that are so disparate (and unfortunately in the case of the Grapenuts and Woody-Allen’s-ghost sketches, desperate) and undercooked that, for a while, Failure was helplessly spiralling into the doldrums of 2-stardom. Gradually, mercifully, sketches begin to recur and gather some momentum, converging upon a climax in Tunbridge Wells which brings the show back from the brink and even elicited the occasional belly laugh.
Most frustratingly, the double act are clearly talented - More Ambiguous Moments with Sean Connery and 00 Szechuan superbly demonstrate the timeless power of silly voices and wordplay to revive an audience - and, particularly for Nick Davies, comic timing and intonation was exceptional. Often though, however well the material was delivered, Failure was sloppily constructed and acted as a disservice to two performers who will hopefully see such a show as developmental rather than defining. Failure and How to Achieve It is worth seeing if only to recognise that this duo will probably produce something better in the future.
