This is the first year of the brand spanking new Chesham Fringe Festival, and watfordfringereviews.blogspot.com is delighted to be there in support, creating a space to kick off the conversation about the dizzying array of creative fare on offer!
My first stop on the inaugural festival day was AdLibretto at the Little Theatre by the Park. They perform one-off original musicals based, in true improvisational comedy fashion, off spontaneous suggestions from the audience. So no script, no pre-agreed lyrics or plot, just very clever, off the cuff comedy and storytelling infused with songs made up on the spot!
Today's show was, to coin a title, 'Bins and Entertainment', about a French street performer called Marcel who upsets the 'boring' town of Chesham whose residents have an aversion to street performance of any kind (lots of tongue in cheek humour here for the local audience and their first fringe!), but eventually he finds a welcome place in the town working on the bins. Fear not: spoilers have no consequence here as this particular show will never be seen again!
And that is one of the major charms of AdLibretto. Everything you watch is unique, bespoke, spontaneous, and one off. The cast work playfully and confidently together, and are generous in creating space for each other, opening up imaginative possibilities and keeping the ball bouncing (or the rubbish juggling in tonight's particular show).
Led by Neil Goulder, this is a funny, clever, engaging hour of entertainment with a truly talented pianist who keeps the musical energy going with mood enhancing instrumentals and improvised accompaniments ranging over a wide span of styles. Definitely one to catch if they return next year!
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