#pickup | Palace Society at 1907 | ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
#pickup is the most hilarious show I’ve seen at Fringe. It’s not what I expected. I was pretty sceptical at first. Maybe it was the hashtag in the title, or the complete overabundance of fifty-something hetro couples who piled into the room with me. But #pickup is a truly original and absolutely fantastic show that you should aim to see if you get the chance.
The show features Alia and Colin, one branch of a polycule who have gone through their fuck-et list and decided to share it with us. They poke fun at themselves, heterosexuality, dating, and the hilarious nature of sex, with the added benefit of a text number which they check during the show.
There’s fundamentally two components of the show, both intertwined. One is the music. Colin is on the electric guitar whilst Alia is on the equally electric ukulele, and honestly, they rock. The music is technically brilliant, but also hilariously entertaining.
Themes range from ‘that time where you take someone home to your house and then decide you don’t want to fuck them so you have to kind of awkwardly ask them to leave’ to ‘I’m really close to orgasm so please let me tell you what to do so we’re not here for another 40 minutes, I’ve got other shit to do too’.
The second part is the text line. You are able to message in and ask the performers at any time questions that they will answer on stage. Be it about polyamory, kinks, a particular song that they sung, their fuck-et list – nothing is out of bounds and everything is (mostly) anonymous.
The whole thing accumulated to the funniest, most sex positive show I think is humanly possible. They remind us that sex is entertaining, funny, and incredibly fun. It’s the human side of sex, rather than the glamorous, look-don’t-touch burlesque you frequently get at fringe.
This show isn’t very up market. It’s not sequins and feathers (although there is a healthy dose of glitter-pits). But if you are looking for excellent sex themed comedy, #pickup is the show to go to.
–Annique Cockerill
#pickup runs until the 11th Febuary, so get in quick. Tickets are available at the Fringe World Website.
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