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Latest items? Unedited? Fringe Report Uncut
ELECTRIC EEL
Verdict: Fast funny sketch comedy
London - Canal Café Theatre - November 02
Next gig: 3 February 03, Soho Theatre (provisional - check with venue)
Electric Eel are Dan Clarke, Adam Goodwin, Cliff Kelly. It's a one-hour show of gifted comedy satirising snips of everyday (and not so everyday) life.
Detective Constables Williams and Thomas deliver bad news to Mrs Lombard: Mr Lombard's dead. Except he isn't: it's a new way for police officers to get a shag, with the help of a flip-chart.
Three Victorian gentlemen in top hats - Dr Hook, Dr Purselton, Dr Madguragay ('Dr Hook, you have a beautiful body') - investigate invisible FuzzyWuzzleNog.
The Art of the Belly Dance - Adam Goodwin shows how it's done.
Mr Stretton's Appointment. Dan Clarke's shy Mr Stretton has an appointment with Adam Goodwin's gay doc ('Am I coming on too strong?). It could be love.
A video store in Catford. Three men in frocks argue ('I hate you, John') about who bought 300 dud videos (The Karate Kid). Judd rings with an offer of 1500 copies of Tron 3 - The Director's Cut (1982). It's a deal ('Buy buy buy! Bye-bye. I love you. Bye Judd.')
Mr Stretton's Appointment - Part Two. Patrick Stretton returns for his appointment with the doc ('It's been a long time since I've had a GP'/'We have a good rapport'). Cue romantic prescription-writing.
Marriage Counselling. There's a problem with Anne (Clarke) and Nick (Goodwin)'s marriage. Cliff Kelly's randy counsellor's set to solve it using restaurant role-play.
Dan Clarke's on with guitar, screws up eyes ('Hello Wembley! My heartfelt song'): 'The craziest Gothic-lipper I ever loved/The craziest long-Sean-Bean-scene I ever seen/The craziest cross-dressing-perverts I ever loved.'
Jeff (Kelly)'s eating chocolate ('A moment on the lips; a lifetime on the hips'). Enter wild-eyed Mac Selhurst (Adam Goodwin) blurting out a hidden topic: 'Thunder-car!'/'Never heard of it. Thunder-car's top secret, nearly cost me my God-damned life. You're way out of line, Mac.' Enter Jess (Dan Clarke). Will he give Thunder-car the go-ahead? ('Imagine the look on Max Brandford's face.')
Spies (Clarke and Goodwin) exchange greetings ('My rainbow stinks of Alan Minter'/'My elbow sounds like a young Jim Bowen'). They're ready to hand over the serum ('Where's Jeremy?'/'I hear him approaching'). But the sketch can't progress Kelly (Jeremy)'s off parking the Transit ('Sorry about this, Cliff used to do this all the time on Rod Hull's Pink Emu Show').
Adam Goodwin does a brilliant mime and dance to Gerry Rafferty's Baker Street, while changing for the next sketch.
Clarke's the waspish gossip causing mayhem at at funeral, centred on Susan - Claude (Kelly)'s unseen wife - and Goodwin's character's interest in her.
Kelly and Clarke are on as macho market-trader Cockneys with a surprise. Kelly's character's turned gay, and Goodwin's character's in love with him ('Turns out I'm only a fuckin' bender, in touch with my homosexuality').
Clarke, Goodwin and Kelly are on for the rousing finale song: 'Shit it feels real good'.
Electric Eel delivers a glorious set. Highlights include Clarke's perfect funeral gossip, Goodwin's fabulous Gerry Rafferty, Kelly's brilliant (Thunder-car) parody of a macho office big-shot, great songs, and the hilarious ensemble Cockney market finale.
Credits. Written, performed and directed by the cast. Intro and outro: Bert Kaempfert's A Swinging Safari. Technical Manager: Yuli.
END
John Park
reviewed Wednesday 13 November 02 / Canal Café Theatre
Fringe Report (c) Fringe Report 2002-2012
