Review by Sofia Luis-Hobbs
A locksmith, murdered by a teddy bear… can it get more random than that?
When the audience set the occupation and method of death in this murder-mystery improv play, I was sure the show was going to flop. ‘There’s no way they can make this work,’ I thought to myself, but lo and behold – they did.
It all began with the Chandeliers – the company behind Crime Scene Improvisation – encouraging people to get involved, getting the crowd to shout out suggestions for the victim’s name, their profession and method of death.
Some random suggestions were made that’s for sure, like death by cabbage and for the victim to be working as a stripper. But we settled on a locksmith by the name of Sybil Sherlock who died at the paws of a teddy bear.
Yes, that’s right – a teddy bear.
I know what you’re thinking, ‘how on earth could anyone by murdered by a teddy bear?’ But the Chandeliers didn’t just make it work, they had the audience in hysterics at the sheer randomness that was unfolding before them.
Read more: See our Leicester Comedy Festival reviews here.
Of course it wouldn’t be an improv performance without there being a few forgotten details or lines that end unexpectedly, but this didn’t put a damper on the performance, it instead added to its comedic value as the group swiftly deal with these hiccups and keep the scenes moving despite any bumps along the journey.
The Chandeliers are no doubt masters in their field and come together like clockwork as a group to put on a wonderfully weird and unique performance every time.
A highlight of shows like this one is that every night is different, meaning you could watch them back to back and there would be a different murder mystery for them to solve each time – I’m sure some are weirder than the rest, but I have no doubt that each will be as beautifully executed as the last.
