| 18 August 2011
Stuart Goldsmith is one of those comedians that an audience cannot help but warm to: he is the fleece-wearing, night-bus-fearing godfather who loves his godson Tom so much that he secretly plots ways to usurp Tom’s father so that he can “keep him.”
Goldsmith is endearingly self-deprecating, with a style of humour that is gentle without being bland. His ruthlessness in describing the hippy-middle-class demographic in Bristol had the audience glowing with laughter, as he illustrated in a bit about a fifth birthday party where seven Finns bobbed for fennel and he started an impromptu rave with music that sounded like “a wolf kicking a keyboard up an escalator.”
The main theme of the show, though, is Goldsmith’s neurosis: with every decision he makes, he is overwhelmed by the same clawing anxiety. He reflects on the day on which, within four simple steps, he went from “do I need to buy a mallet?” to “I’ll always be alone” whilst weeping into his mallet-clutching hand. But rest assured, the laughter that ensues is cathartic and not of the ‘oh God we should laugh before he cuts himself’ variety. Indeed, Goldsmith has great ease in interacting with the audience, though perhaps he spends more time than he needs to asking them questions.
Goldsmith's wit is quick and jokes plentiful, but one feels there is something missing in his performance. While he would easily win the Comedian Congeniality Contest, his jokes fall just short of having the same winning potential. With a dash more confidence Goldsmith would be brilliant.
Stewart Goldsmith: Another Lovely Crisis, Pleasance Courtyard, 3-28 Aug (not 17), 7.00 pm
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