REVIEW | By Paul Judge
THE usher welcoming us into the theatre looks a lot like the comic Lawrence Leung we’ve come to see tonight. He then takes off his black shirt and tells us he’ll go behind the curtain and we can all cheer him on. The penny drops, it is him. A nice personal touch to start.
It is a very relaxed mood for his show ‘Beginning. Middle. End.’ which is based around his reaction to finding out someone posted erotic fan fiction about him and Toadie from Neighbours. Less 50 Shades of Grey though, it’s just plain weird as he reads some extracts to us. The fan fiction however is a minor part of the story as he takes us through a tale touching on university crushes, being the victim and being the hero, and oddly – his rivalry with Colin Firth. That actually is a very funny part of the show as men all round can relate to losing out to fictional characters like Mr Darcy.
It’s a different comedy show from what I’m used to be. It has more of a story element to it than a bunch of one-liners. He’s no doubt a funny guy and has a crazy imagination but sometimes I found the jokes a tad contrived or over exaggerated as if to make sure we knew this was a funny part.
Overall the show gets you thinking too; he raises some interesting points about we might perceive ourselves while others can see a different angle. I liked that, a few laughs mixed in with some beginner psychology. If my lecturers at university had used that method I might have got a better mark.
Don’t miss Lawrence Leung at the Soho Theatre for his Beginning. Middle. End. until 14 July