★★★★★

“unique, surreal and consistently hilarious”

Earlier today, a friend asked me what it took to get five stars at a fringe level. I’ve never really had a metric. Probably never will. But if I had to say, and so I said then in reply, I would say a show within which I can’t find any noteworthy fault or facet that I would change.

There is not a single thing I would change about Jazz Emu: The Pleasure is all Yours.

As a show, it’s genre-transcending; not in any arthouse, revolutionary way, but in the fashion of an artist so overwhelmed with their platter of impressive talents that they simply cannot just focus on one. And nor should they. Archie Henderson, aka Jazz Emu, is one such artist. I think I ought to keep this review on the shorter side because I genuinely think it’s best enjoyed going in completely blind, and there’s so many strings and motifs, genre and form turns (from music to comedy to film) that describing any one would give the impression that it somehow exceeds the others. But this is not the case. The best thing about Jazz Emu is how seamlessly and consistently everything intertwines; early in the show, he makes a slightly erroneous reference to Chekhov’s gun, which he more than embodies, not only in actually firing the gun later on, but in every other joke. No matter how random each one seems, it’s always returned to in a satisfying, or “gruntling” (In his parlance) way. There’s even a reprise of jokes about reprises. All this makes a wonderful antidote to the absurdly camp, somewhat surrealist tone of the show at large. Henderson creates the atmosphere of comically unhinged mania but in reality is in total control.

A wonderful exemplification of this is his unique delivery; many of the punchlines are almost whispered, or made as seemingly offhand comments, so that the audience collectively settles into the joke as they put the pieces together. From quips about his untraceable accent to songs about the strangeness of human biology and his totally not plagiarised hierarchy of needs, many of the best jokes are nestled into the set up, rendering every other line worthy of a laugh. There’s no weak section, either; even ones which initially seem a little too conceptual or absurd soon win you ever.

If you’re looking for something unique, surreal and consistently hilarious in a variation of creative ways, Jazz Emu is for you. The character Henderson crafts is so vivid and watchable that I now feel a little uncomfortable that he isn’t real; despite his absurd narcissism he’s likeable, and despite his abundant talents he never seems genuinely braggadocio or self-indulgent. Also the songs are genuinely catchy; finding the perfect number of irony layers to actually just be really good again. I can’t recommend the show enough, if you’re in the mood. I’m now gonna go check out his YouTube channel. It’s infectious.

DANCE DANCE INVOLUTION

Edinburgh Festival Fringe

★★★★

“brims with originality and creative flair”

Dance Dance Involution truly embodies the word “unique”. And that’s not a backhanded compliment. It’s truly original; the personalities and talents of its three creator-performers are so immediate and vibrant, grounding their theatricality in familiar childhood and adolescent lived experience.

The show opens with a rest; all three of the performers lie lethargically on top of each other, musing on whether there’s any purpose in continuing. Eventually, they decide, for the audience’s sake, they should probably do something. I’m very grateful they do. What follows is a series of sort-of skits placing the central question of the show – whether meritocracy remotely exists anymore in an economic context seemingly uninterested in fulfilling its end of the social contract to its youth – in tik-tok dances, school debating competitions and speech showcases. Involution is their target; the excessive pursuit of productivity which begats an exhausted, uninspired work force who ironically are far less productive and miserable on top of that.

The play is not absurdist as such, but it does highlight incredibly well the absurd facets of many contemporary societal occurrences, entrenched both here and in Hong Kong. With wonderful camp flare, a particular highlight is the introduction of the school debate in a style reminiscent of a boxing match, with both ‘fighters’ screaming to hype themselves up and stink eyeing their opponent from the other end of the ring. This exaggerated theatricality highlights how strange it is how children are pushed immediately into seeing so much in the world, from poetry to dancing, as a competition, when the adult world, to reach its maximum productivity, needs far more collaboration. Their motif of highlighting absurdity through theatrical exploration extends to the digital world, too; a great audience interaction section (one of many) encourages an audience member to, with a comical large hand on a stick, swipe every time they lose interest, forcing the trio to perpetually change in the middle of sections, displaying how strange it really is; the habit of quitting on art (which such technology encourages). Within the often very funny exchanges and physical sequences, poignant observations abound.

The show’s main flaw, in my view, is lingering too long on these observations rather than allowing the implication to grow through further theatrical ‘showing’ and within the audience’s minds. A few times, points felt excessively didactic, which made the watching experience less engaging, because it no longer felt participatory; we become passive recipients of ideas, rather than fellow analysts and inventors.

Nevertheless, DDI simply brims with originality and creative flair, and one remains very engaged despite the sections which need a little tightening. I am biased in that I too am part of the entry level generation and thus related to many of their ideas and expressions, but even if one can’t, their unique style of presentation, charming humanity and intelligent critiques will nevertheless prove as insightful as they are entertaining.

Tag Archives: Edinburgh Festival Fringe

JAZZ EMU: THE PLEASURE IS ALL YOURS

★★★★★

Edinburgh Festival Fringe

JAZZ EMU: THE PLEASURE IS ALL YOURS

Edinburgh Festival Fringe

★★★★★

“unique, surreal and consistently hilarious”

JAZZ EMU: THE PLEASURE IS ALL YOURS

Edinburgh Festival Fringe

Reviewed on 15th AUgust 2025 at Queen Dome at Pleasance Dome

by Horatio Holloway

Photography by Matt Stronge

JAZZ EMU

JAZZ EMU

JAZZ EMU

DANCE DANCE INVOLUTION

★★★★

Edinburgh Festival Fringe

DANCE DANCE INVOLUTION

Edinburgh Festival Fringe

★★★★

“brims with originality and creative flair”