Comedian and Italian expat Stefania Licari enjoyed a sold-out run at last year’s Edinburgh Fringe with her show I Can Make You Italian in 55 Minutes, so naturally returned this year with some degree of hype.
Dedicating nearly an hour to trying to help us Brits become more Italian – physically, mentally, emotionally and all the other ways you can imagine – Licari brings an undeniably attractive and confident stage presence.
Revolving primarily around themes of family, love and particularly Licari’s mother, who is a focal point of the performance, the comedian – who was once an NHS doctor – pulls no punches in her delivery. Bold, unapologetic and passionate with a modern take on women’s roles in society makes Licari a refreshing comic, and ultimately adds surprising emotional layers to a show which, on the surface, looks far less intricate.
It is this same point which causes somewhat of a disconnect between how the show advertises itself and what it actually delivers though. Despite Licari pitching how she is going to change the way we walk, talk, eat and love in the opening minutes, the show instead feels like it turns into, primarily, stories of Licari’s experiences with British men compared to Italian men.
Indeed, the only real audience participation came within the first 10 minutes or so, when Licari pulled one man up from the front row to teach him how to walk and pose as though he was back in her home country. Thanks in part to this man’s willingness to laugh at himself and play into the ridiculousness of his situation, it prompted what ultimately sounded like the biggest reaction of the show. It feels like Licari could have benefitted a lot from much more of that sort of interaction.
Instead, the topics she focuses on feel a little disjointed and whilst there are “running jokes” and quips that Licari refers back to throughout the runtime, they fall a little flat as she hops from topic to topic – sometimes without great connection.
Whilst the audience were certainly never left in stony silence, the show never really delivered any big laughs, and it felt like the Italian-focused side of Licari’s humour was far stronger than the British side. This, again, makes me believe that with some tweaking to focus solely on the audience and teaching them the Italian ways, the show could benefit hugely.
This isn’t to take away from Licari’s potential as a comedian and her natural stage presence and personality but is rather a suggestion that perhaps dividing this show into two separate entities – a comedic Italian how-to guide and a separate tell-all on her experiences as an expat – could produce a diamond from the rough.
