Review: DEAD DAD SHOW, VAULT Festival

Some shows are great even when everything goes wrong. Some shows shine through missed cues, nerves, line prompts, and failing tech. Some shows are simply excellent trainwrecks. Simon David's Dead Dad Show is one of those. With a personality the size of a football stadium and the effortlessness of a consummate entertainer, he saves his own piece. It could have all gone so very wrong, but it didn't.

After a sudden cancer diagnosis, his dad wrote a one-man act about it. He passed away shortly after in 2018, so now Simon is writing his own to remember him and deal with the loss. It's a mish-mash of genres, mocking popular theatre tropes and subverting genres. In sequence, he spoofs Everybody's Talking About Jamie and The Normal Heart before going into an interpretative dance and even TikTok. It's honestly fantastic.

Evans is unafraid of making fun of himself as well as the industry's traditional forms, but - underneath all the fuss and early-draft vibe - Dead Dad Show is ultimately a tender and heartfelt play about family and art. A reminder to cherish those we love. It will appeal to those who have dark humour as their coping mechanism and laugh about dead dad jokes.

The footage of his late father introduces a profound man with a sharp wit and lovely demeanour. While we can't officially give more than three for obvious reasons, this is a five-star show at heart. We can't wait to see its final form.

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