The St Andrews Revue’s offering to this year’s Fringeis everything student comedy should be. It is acutely observed without being cynical, self-aware without being self-congratulatory, and above all, extremely funny. The show loosely follows the four cast members in the run up to prom, with many diversions along the way. There are parody songs, time travelling sketches and probably the only joke about the Scottish referendum that I have seen this Fringe which succeeds in being both original and funny.
The cast are extremely strong: wry and self-aware, with excellent timing and a great eye for a punchline. They are gently self-mocking, but also highly professional in their execution.
Each sketch sets up the next one, with recurring motifs throughout. This gives the show a coherence and sense of professionalism that is often lacking in student comedy. Prom does not feel like a series of disjointed sketches, but rather an overarching narrative. This makes the wide variety of topics covered all the more impressive: somehow a show which takes in everything from long distance relationships to the invention of the mug seems cohesive and well-balanced.
The cast are extremely strong: wry and self-aware, with excellent timing and a great eye for a punchline. They are gently self-mocking, but also highly professional in their execution.
If there is one piece of student comedy that you should see this Fringe, Prom is it. One of biggest laughs in the show comes from a parody song concerning the group’s inferiority complex with regard to the Cambridge Footlights. On the evidence of this show, I’m not sure they need to worry.
