This show is a hoot, or perhaps that should be a honk or a quack. Yet it all starts very quietly, for we are presented with the romantic vista of a tranquil lake, edged by silver birch trees. There is birdsong, too, but soon all this sylvan serenity is broken by the loud slap of webbed feet, as Howard Coggins, a rotund coot, and Stu Mcloughlin, a lanky duck, waddle in to welcome you to an important meeting of the ‘Wetland Avian Council.’ Apparently, all of birdland wants to know why this ‘Swan Lake’ is so called, given that no swans have been seen on it in living memory. What happened to them all? We are told that it’s a very sad story, though in this version any tears you shed will be those of helpless laughter.
Yet don’t expect non-stop tomfoolery. Yes, there are groan-inducing puns, silly songs and episodes of utter daftness in abundance, but there are also passages of real beauty, for Coggins and Mcloughlin have included sequences of ballet, danced with poise and precision by Josh Hutchby and Francisca Mendo. It’s an audacious mix of high art and clowning, and it shouldn’t really work, but they get away with it. In previous shows Living Spit have shown that they have a knack of being very funny while showing a considerable degree of respect for the subject matter in hand, be it the life of Elizabeth 1st or the achievements of Winston Churchill. Choreographed by Holly Noble, the episodes of ballet are almost always presented in an entirely dignified fashion, as at the start of the second half, where Hutchby and Mendo offer a delightful pas de deux. However, the well-known ‘dance of the cygnets’ falls prey to Coggins and Mcloughlin at their most irreverent, with hysterical results. That the two ‘proper’ dancers remain straight-faced throughout is a miracle of self-control.
Produced by Theatre Orchard and directed by Craig Edwards, this Swan Lake is snappily short, coming in at just a little more than an hour, but it is packed with inventive sight gags and very clever wordplay. Living Spit have built up a very considerable following in the Bristol area, and their fame has been spreading wider. This show will please those familiar with their unique brand of comedy-theatre, and it is sure to bring them many new fans. Go and discover your inner waterfowl – but don’t eat the stale bread! ★★★★★ Mike Whitton 1st February 2020
