Perhaps the definition of late-night Fringe; the ever-talented and always vulgar Myra DuBois will have you reeling off your chair – both from laughter and from shock. Holding the audience’s attention in the palm of her gin-soaked (and man-sized) hand, Myra holds no prisoners when it comes to her humour. Wasting no time in informing us of her appearance on John Bishop’s show last year, it is clear that we are in fact in the same room as an A-Lister: a bundle of talent whose repertoire includes acting, singing and dancing. And that’s at the same time as being stunningly beautiful: it seems some just have it all.
Myra and her tonic will take you to the raunchiest pits of farce: leave your inhibitions at the door and – whatever you do – don’t be late.
A generally strong character, Myra jokes about the moment when her shows seem to become ‘hostage situations’. And it’s true – a couple of girls went to leave the auditorium and she thanked them for their time with enough blasphemy to cause a cathedral to crumble. But that was the style of the performance – out there, inappropriate and filthy. Myra lamented at the things she had to do for money in the modern climate: with the worst of the worst being children’s entertainment (cue a joke about how the name Myra generally doesn’t mix with children). Following soon after was a failed – and admittedly hilarious – magic trick sequence.
Talented as she is, when it comes to cracking jokes there are a few topics which will never – under any circumstances – be funny (or even vaguely acceptable). Racism and the disappearance of Madeline McCann both feature on this list, but unfortunately also feature in tonight’s set. Myra DuBois: DuBois Entendre manages to venture where anyone with an ounce of decency decides not to, and places a flag of ignorance in its place. I thought it a shame to include such puns, especially as her other material had us in stitches without being so needlessly boorish.
Becoming more inebriated (and more toxic with her audience-based slurs) as the night progressed, Myra joked about how she wanted it to end. I must admit, though hysterical at the start – I felt as though she had put more effort into the opening part of the act. It takes more talent to come up with one-liners and to formulate witty stories than it does to swear and be crass, even if it did make us laugh. That’s not to say it wasn’t an enjoyable night, though, and it was well-placed (if a little superfluous) in the proceedings of the set.
A humorous night combined with mild fear, Myra and her tonic will take you to the raunchiest pits of farce: leave your inhibitions at the door and – whatever you do – don’t be late.
