(Tim Plewman)
(Review from the artSMart team covering the 2014 Witness Hilton Arts
Festival which ran at Hilton College from September 19 to 21)
Commanding and
boisterous performance in hilarious comedy. (Review by Keith Millar)
Tim Plewman is a
talented, skilled and experienced theatre all-rounder, and is a veteran of the
South African stage. All these attributes were brought to bear in his
commanding and boisterous performance of his play Designer Genes XXL which was seen at the recent Witness Hilton Arts
Festival.
In this hilarious
comedy, Plewman expands on the gender debate he started with his famous
production, Defending the Caveman.
He takes his
audience on a roller coaster ride of laughter as he discusses everything from
the origins of man as the hunter/gatherer, to shopping expeditions in the
modern day shopping malls. He also talks about issues such as the behaviour of
men and women at braais and the effect of women’s magazines on relationship
dynamics.
Plewman starts his
show by teaching any foreign audience members the many colloquial South African
and Afrikaans words he liberally and hilariously uses in his monologue.
He then relates the
story of meeting a group of angry woman in a doctor’s waiting room. They think
all men are contemptible beings. This sets him off on his hour-long journey of
hilarity in an effort to prove that the differences between men and woman are
in the genes.
Plewman is a
powerful performer and a master of comedy pace and timing. He has excellent
rapport with his audience and certainly had the capacity crowd at the splendid
Grindrod Bank Theatre at Hilton College in the palm of his hand.
Judging from their
reactions they had all experienced - or were experiencing - the joys, and
frustrations, of being in a relationship. Although Plewman’s observations and
opinions may be exaggerated for the sake of comedy, it seems that they
certainly do not fall far from the mark.
If you loved Defending the Caveman then this sequel, Designer Genes XXL, is for you.
However, the show does stand alone and should be enjoyed by all who have experienced
or even just pondered the inherent differences between the sexes. – Keith
Millar
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