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.

THE SIMPLE LIFE & DEATH at the Pleasance Theatre

Reviewed on 28th November 2024

by Lara van Huyssteen

Photography by Lucy Hayes

Previously reviewed at this venue:

16 POSTCARDS | ★★★ | October 2024

GIRLS REALLY LISTEN TO ME | ★★★★ | May 2024

GISELLE: REMIX | ★★★★★ | April 2024

GWYNETH GOES SKIING | ★★★ | February 2024

CASTING THE RUNES | ★★★ | October 2023

DIANA: THE UNTOLD AND UNTRUE STORY | ★★★★ | November 2022

DIRTY CORSET | ★★½ | April 2022

SHE SEEKS OUT WOOL | ★★★★ | January 2022

DOG SHOW | ★★★★★ | December 2021

LIGHTS OUT | ★★★★ | October 2021

THE SIMPLE LIFE

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★★★

“Regan clearly has a talent for light-hearted comedy and storytelling”

16 Postcodes is a series of short, autobiographic stories told by actor Jessica Regan about her experiences living in London. An audience member is invited up on stage to pick a postcode (written on a postcard and attached to the backdrop of the stage) and Regan performs the selected story. Each story is about a different London gaff and the spans are wide: from North to South, East to West. Regan has been on an expansive and diverse journey, trying to find what London means to her.

She greets the audience as they enter, innocently asking them where they’re from, to get them thinking about locations. She riffs with ease, nudging the audience into feeling comfortable about mild participation.

Regan clearly has a talent for light-hearted comedy and storytelling, combining both in this easy viewing series. As we dart through different postcodes, Regan covers important topics, such as: women’s safety, homelessness, feeling out of place, tight landlords. And she does this with a likeable comedic edge, blending naturalism with stand-up comedy.

The staging was a bare setup; simply with a table, two chairs and a small backdrop of greenery where Regan attaches the postcards with postcodes on. It could’ve been even simpler, giving her more freedom of movement, something which the show lacked. While the rough and ready set added to the charm of the piece, it felt clunky, at times; with Regan getting stuck behind obstacles while addressing the audience. There was use of a mic at one point too, which raised questions about its use and the reason for it.

The lighting and sound, too, were basic. With small changes either signifying time of day or change of scene, rather than mood and atmosphere. This meant that the show relied solely on Regan to deliver engaging narrative, which she did execute a lot of the time. The humour was a little tame and lacked some renter grit, but it made for an entertaining fifty minutes.

Any Londoner would see etchings of themselves in these short tales of renting, with humour used as a relieving mode of coping and a medium which ties the community together. There is felt, lived experience in the storytelling. 16 Postcodes finishes with some sad truths about the state of the renting sector. The show covers a timeline which starts in 2004, and the factual ending is a stark reminder of the situation a large number of Londoners find themselves in.

THE SIMPLE LIFE & DEATH at the Pleasance Theatre

★★★★★

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

THE SIMPLE LIFE & DEATH at the Pleasance Theatre

Reviewed on 28th November 2024

by Lara van Huyssteen

Photography by Lucy Hayes

Previously reviewed at this venue:

THE SIMPLE LIFE

THE SIMPLE LIFE

16 POSTCODES at the Pleasance Theatre

★★★

“Regan clearly has a talent for light-hearted comedy and storytelling”

16 POSTCODES at the Pleasance Theatre

Reviewed on 29th October 2024

by Curtis Dean

Photography by Steve Ullathorne

Previously reviewed at this venue:

16 POSTCODES

16 POSTCODES