Salford's bohemian boozer, the Kings Arms, has a great way of dealing with the January blues. They intend to brighten up your month with some hand-picked highlights from 2019's Greater Manchester Fringe Festival including Rose Condo: The Empathy Experiment, Skank, Danny and the Deep Blue Sea, Ladies Antebellum: A Mighty Fine Adventure, Fifty and Nifty, 2 Clowns 1 Cup, Cruelty, Punk Sandwich; Madame Chandelier's Rough Guide To The Opera and Dougie: Can I Be Serios?
One of many shows well worth taking in is Rose Condo's Empathy Experiment (Wednesday 15th and Thursday 16th 7pm: £6). This show was smash at both The Edinburgh and Manchester Fringe. In the show, Rose examines if abandoning technology can help us to engage with others more effectively. We had a chat with our favourite Salford based Canadian poet...
Tell us a little about the Show?
"The Empathy Experiment is a solo spoken word show that asks if empathy is facing extinction and whether mobile devices are to blame. The show is the final hour of my day of no mobile phones, and I use poetry and research to try and prove my theory that empathy can be saved…think Dr. Seuss meets Bill Nye the Science Guy."
What have been your highlights?
"I received Arts Council England funding and developed the show in collaboration with amazing artists Dominic Berry, Kirsten Luckins, Eleonora Rosca, Charles Leek, Kate Morton and Victoria Firth.
"I performed at the Greater Manchester Fringe for the first time and won Best Spoken Word Show at the GM Fringe Awards. I had a successful run at the PBH Free Fringe in Edinburgh, gaining positive reviews as well as incredible feedback from audiences. I had three subtitled performances in 2019 which opened up access to the show for D/deaf audiences as well as people who have English as an additional language."
Do you have a favourite moment in the show?
"One of my favourite moments in the show is when I invite audiences to hand over their mobile devices for the 'final hour' of my experiment. Some people are eager to be rid of their phone for the hour-long show, whilst others are very reluctant. (I assure everyone that their phones will be well looked after!). This experience has provoked urgent and animated feedback, and I'm told the ideas explored really stay with people long after they've seen the show."
Other shows taking place in January include: Skank: a show that will deliver an awkwardly topical comedy that has drawn comparisons with Fleabag. Classic Bronx Tale Danny and the Deep Blue Sea offers immersive escapism. Ladies Antebellum: A Mighty Fine Adventure is an Ed-Fringe Award winner with themes of theft, swindling and romance.
Fifty and Nifty is a brilliant sideways look at the aging process. Madame Chandelier's Rough Guide to the Opera is a joyfully ridiculous invitation into the world of an anti-diva of opera. Taking opera to the masses, this high-camp comedy guides you through opera plots with jokes, death scenes and a Nessun Dorma sing-along!
Dougie: Can I Be Serios is an award-winning show that was well-received in Edinburgh. He has supported big name stars as wide ranging as Jimmy Carr and Shane Ritchie. 2 Clowns 1 Cup is a celebration of awkward and downright funny sexual experiences. Take a voyeuristic look at the dirty details, and join two clowns on a wild journey of self-discovery!
Cruelty take us on a descent into the twisted reality of our internet decisions, where all is not what it seems and the innocuous can be devastating. Not only has Punk Sandwich got a great title, it has also been nominated for a host of awards and is billed, intriguingly, as a noisy mime show.
What better way to combat the January blues than to see the very best entertainment from the GM Fringe? There genuinely is something for all tastes. Get along and celebrate the finest of the region's talent. Celebrate the wonderful, diverse brilliance of the festival.
Rose Condo's Empathy Experiment plays Wednesday 15th January and Thursday 16th January at 7pm each night (captioned performance on Thursday). £6
For more details see https://www.rosecondo.net/the-empathy-experiment
See http://www.kingsarmssalford.com/ for other show times and prices
Words by Ian Leslie
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