Writers and Directors: Stu Barter and Clare Dunn
Let’s all get on the same page here. It’s objectively good to come together to raise chunks of cash for worthy causes – no one could dispute that. But the methods and madness that people employ to achieve this end can sometimes be bewildering, bizarre and mixed with a selfish motive. There’s also a divide over what’s worthy and what’s just one group’s pet issue. All of which means when big money, celebrity and fundraising come together there’s a rich and potentially inexhaustible seam of sharp material for satirists to mine.
Sharing the writing and directing duties, Stu Barter and Clare Dunn (along with additional creation by the three main cast members of Archie Backhouse, Erin Hutching and Katie Lovell) have made a good go at skewering most of the crucial targets with celebrity hosted telethons. There’s a good mix of characters, Hutching as an eager kids’ TV presenter, Backhouse as a keen but green YouTuber, and Lovell as a disgraced celeb clawing her way back to relevance and solvency. They’ve also picked out some high-potential set-pieces on which to base a chaotic show. Unvetted guests, a 24hr live broadcast, technical issues, social media trolling and uncomfortable hosts ensure that what starts off as a great vehicle for all three stars and a climate-change charity should descend into a delightful farce.
It sadly doesn’t quite work out like that. Being the audience for this filmed telethon is a distracting experience. We see, at times, three sets of captions or subtitles for us to read that don’t quite match the performance timing or wording, big projection screens that shift around and drag focus away, sporadic audience interaction and participation and other quirks which run throughout. Adding to the disorientation are the narrative threads running through that seem to lead nowhere, or at least to unsatisfying endings. A bold and intriguing choice to have an incest storyline (a strong performance from Kwami Odoom as the brother in this filmed segment) fails to deliver a meaningful punch beyond an exhortation to not engage with internet trolls. The touching story of Jennifer’s personal life and her desire to connect with her daughter is used as fuel for a breakdown without much elegance. The general pace of change and escalation to go from glitzy charity show to literally a trash fire in about 13 hours is rapid and, to fit it in, squeezes out some vital nuance, character building and progression. The onstage cast does well with it – entertaining, funny and touching throughout. Until the final few minutes.
As the Telethon itself goes off the rails in the final quarter of the 90 minute run-time, unfortunately so does this production. Veering sharply away from what the rest of the show promised to be – a dramatic, turbulent and heady finish that ties up these irritatingly dangling stories – we get an inexplicably po-faced and elongated dance routine. Great music, but leaves us without a clue as to what happens the incest family, the damaged presenters, the telethon’s remaining hours of broadcast, the money raised or anything else.
It feels like there’s two different productions competing for space; a smart satire on charity and celebrity, and a more abstract and seriously toned comment on climate and what constitutes actually taking action. Letting the audience witness this competition means the benefits of either are lost, and we’re left with quite an odd show that shouts over whatever its real message is trying to be.
Runs until 14 April 2022 then tours
The Reviews Hub Score
An odd show
