Writer: Some Smith and Moore
Director: Alfred Taylor-Gaunt
In the show blurb, the collaborative creative ensemble Some Smith and Moore describe Derrière on a G String as a “cheeky new comedy dance sensation”. Given that the dance sketch piece first appeared at Sadler’s Wells in 2019, the label ‘new’ is pushing it a bit.
Is the show “the cheekiest in 50 years of the King’s Head Theatre”, as the pre-show trigger warning claims? Nudity is threatened on the programme cover, but the performers’ dance belts remain firmly on throughout, suggesting it lacks the full-frontal shock value of at least one of its predecessors at the venue, Naked Boys Singing. For all its claims of being a provocative sensation, the show remains a polished piece of non-verbal physical comedy and dance-theatre set to music, rather than anything particularly rule-breaking. Think a chuckle-inducing mash-up of Mr Bean with Matthew Bourne and the Minions from the Despicable Me series of movies.
Director and choreographer Alfred Taylor-Gaunt delivers an eclectic mix of movement styles in sketches ranging from a few seconds to a few minutes. Classical ballet tropes are parodied in the “Buttcracker Pas de Deux”, set to Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker. The piece features Grunt (Ryan Upton) and Drip (Cam Tweed) as high-vis-vested, hard-hatted builders who find an unexpected romance while sharing Twixes on the building site.
“I Don’t Watch Football”, set to Brahms’ Hungarian Dance, sees the other male performers, Flop (Sammy Moore) and Twitch (Courtney Cyrus), follow a similar romantic path on the football pitch, punctuated by a selection of more contemporary dance moves. Vinyl (Ena Yamaguchi) breaks into high-energy slapstick as she faces the challenge of putting a recalcitrant duvet inside its cover. The male performers tap and stomp as they break wind and feign constipation on a side-by-side trip to a public toilet, a comic highlight that goes on rather too long.
Other highlights include Slosh’s (Alice O’Brien) relentless pursuit of a male audience member during scene transitions – anticipate mild-mannered audience interactions throughout. A quartet of black-hooded teens vape in harmony, accompanied by Camille Saint-Saëns’ Carnival of the Animals. Edvard Grieg’s Morning Wood sees Upton fantasise about a range of unexpected sexual couplings as he wakes up in bed. The best running joke sees Moore suffer a series of embarrassing social faux pas, including spilt drinks, a misaimed kiss and a missed high-five. The ensemble comes together for a mild-mannered drinks party that goes downhill once someone brings out the cocaine.
For all its rather tedious posturing, the 75-minute sketch show’s real appeal lies in its well-crafted wordless humour, endearing whimsy, and light-hearted subversion of high-brow dance culture. In truth, there is about as much smut in Derrière on a G String as in a mildly homoerotic take on a 1970s Carry On film. Even the choice of classical music that accompanies each vignette feels more mainstream Classic FM than the avant-garde fringes of the Proms. Come for the slapstick, accessible dance, and visual comedy, but don’t expect much in the way of transgressive grit.
Runs until 7 June 2026
