THE SIMPLE LIFE & DEATH at the Pleasance Theatre

★★★★★

“spot-on comedic timing delivers the infinite number of stunning one-liners”

When Paris Hilton wrote the song Stars Are Blind, she was manifesting the divine power that brought the creators of The Simple Life & Death together. How do you create a show that is wildly niche while still making the entire audience feel included on the joke? You do it exactly like this.

The Simple Life & Death, created by Shane ShayShay Konno and Fizz Sinclair, is a masterclass in camp theatre that makes you laugh to the extent where you become deeply concerned for your own health. The performance is set in a current day TV studio on the Arkansas farm where The Simple Life, the noughties reality series starring Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie, was filmed from 2003 to 2007. At the top of the show, it is established that we are the studio audience for the live reunion special of the iconic TV series. We are introduced to Paris (Shane ShayShay Konno) and Nicole (Fizz Sinclair) in velour Juicy Couture tracksuits and blonde wigs. They are joined by surprise celebrity guests who, through rapid costume changes, are all brilliantly portrayed by Sinclair.

The set design (Ray Gammon) features pink directors’ chairs, a large haybale, film cameras and a neon ON AIR sign. What starts off as a delightful reunion with Paris, Nicole and friends quickly turns dark when one of the cast members is MURDERED. Cue the terrifying lightning and thunder. This incites Paris’ hunt for the killer so she may prove her innocence before she “gets cancelled by Gen Z on Tik-tok”. With the culprit in the studio, Paris starts interviewing all the celebrities turned suspects. Who dunnit?

This performance uses drag, sketch comedy, music and a satisfying amount of British panto elements to give us a highly original take on a murder mystery. Paris and Nicole welcome the audience and introduce their lovely assistant, Twinkerbell (Aïsha Kent) who is also the legit stage manager for the show, instilling the notion that the performers are appearing as themselves in various drag and comedy personas. They play with this throughout the evening as Twinkerbell facilitates scene changes for Konno and Sinclair who make off the cuff comments to the audience. It’s impressive how effortlessly they navigate between the narrative and sincere acknowledgments of self-awareness, thereby creating an immersive space. We are all in on the joke.

The ingenuity of the writing is effortlessly carried by Konno and Sinclair. Their spot-on comedic timing delivers the infinite number of stunning one-liners, all accessible to the audience with their varied references from Y2K nostalgia to current day pop culture. Some include Legally Blonde, White Lotus and Ghost Hunting with Girls Aloud. This diversity in the text allows the past and present to come together in a celebration of shared memories between audience members, further immersing us in the performance space. The sound design (Eliyana Evans) is also employed to create this shared familiarity through sounds from recognisable TV series such as X-Factor, Judge Judy and American Horror Story. The dramaturgical frame of the fictional TV special is continuously reinforced through ‘filming’ breaks and reoccurring parodical product placements for Paris’ numerous entrepreneurial endeavours.

Seamlessly moving between wholesome, witty and irreverent, Konno and Sinclair are consistently funny. With fabulous costumes, hysterical singing outbursts and mesmerising stage presence they deliver a truly remarkable display of showmanship. Creating an inclusive and immersive performance that could put top comedians to shame, Konno and Sinclair are masters of their craft. We can only hope that their collaboration continues. In the meantime, do yourself a courtesy and RUN to see The Simple Life & Death. It’s really hot.