Holly Burn - Living and Dying

Holly Burn’s new show is a rip-roaring hour of delicious madness. Following on the heels of last year’s At Home With Holly, Living and Dying is surreal, hilarious fun. Burn has an infectious energy and an irresistible charm that gives her all the licence she needs to experiment wildly.At times Burn is like an irrepressible toddler given too many sweets, performing at the top of the stairs. Characters such as Jason The Very Rich Tiger are performed with an enthusiastic innocence, but given an additional layer by the addition of satirical theme tunes, Ocado and – delightfully – footnotes. In lesser hands, such surrealism could be wearying, but the confidence and intelligence of the delivery – exemplified in an enchanting, tragic American Beauty-inspired mime – carry this show beyond self-conscious novelty and towards a genuinely refreshing and innovative set. Burn displays an easy rapport, at one point casting aside empty seats to sit alongside one unfortunate victim, all the while in her cone-faced alter ego Custard Flanagan. Her chastisement of latecomers is handled with a light touch, and she meanders around the room engaging every part of the audience. Living and Dying is the most inventive show I’ve seen at this year’s Fringe. Burn is fearlessly daring: like anything this original, not everything works, but the sum of the parts amounts to a hugely entertaining hour.