The Fringe is often associated with weird and wonderful shows with small audiences, in small back rooms.
Twonkey’s Basket Weaving in Peru was such a show.
Musical background
Several other Fringe performers were in the audience, suggesting this was one for the purists. Perhaps other people were aware of Paul Vickers’ career as a musician, with the cult indie band Dawn of the Replicants. Vickers was the lead singer of the band and also played keyboards. These skills were well used in this entertaining, humorous show.
To the uninitiated, the whole thing was initially slightly difficult to grasp. The title suggested something rather silly when in fact the humour was often rather sophisticated. The act one was one which could be appreciated on several levels. It was a show where you had to suspend some of your logical faculties and embrace the eccentricity. If you were to close your eyes during the performance, you might well feel you were in the middle of a strange dream.
Quality songs
The different routines and songs will loosely connected to a theme of a life in Peru. Though Vickers seemed relieved no one from that country had attended his show; he didn’t want to cause offense. The tale was told through bits of slightly creepy puppetry and musical interludes using bits of household equipment. A segment with a homemade puppet of Steve Martin (partly made out of a washboard) was a highlight, if difficult to describe. As was the panpiping doll! In general, it was full of joyful moments.
What held the show together was the quality of the songs and the way that they were performed. In these, the whole show lifted from something merely eccentric to something truly enjoyable. The catchy tunes and amusing lyrics caused everyone to join in in. This lifted the mood. While some audience members who might have found some aspects beyond comprehension, the show really captured a certain ramshackle, unorthodox concept of the Fringe. Certainly, it’s far from what you might find at the big venues of the paid Fringe. A real flavour of the Fringe as a place where you don’t know what to expect; and where a show may take time to make sense of !
Twonkey’s Basket Weaving in Peru
Dragonfly / Main Room, until 25 August at 8:15pm.
