Seen by Federica at Edinburgh Festival Fringe on the 8th of August 2024
5 stars – engagingly surreal
Who is Monkion? It’s easier to say what they are not. They are not humans, and they aren’t capable of empathy. They move in a funny way, and they are obsessed with… Benedict Cumberbatch! So much so that they have kidnapped him, and they have to figure out what to do with him.
This creature who lives in the attic and is afraid of the darkness is drawn from their childhood imagination, as stated by the writers and performers Rosa Thomas and Maya Hallpike of Hooky Productions. With the perfect cohesion between them, the two sisters bring on stage these bizarre characters who have (allegedly) honest intentions.
With their faces painted white like some sort of masks, the actresses employ at the most their astonishing physical technique, estranging Monkion from human forms of movement, expression, and thought. Within the set of experiments to make Cumberbatch ‘come back’, Maya and Rosa often interact with the audience, with several moments of improvisation resulting from it. These sketches are carried out with great spontaneity and hilarity, and they are one further proof of the performers’ abilities. The only weaker point is the subtle feeling of a patchwork composition in the progression of the performance, but it is compensated by the exceptional technique, the originality of ideas, and the humour.
2nd-25th August; 2 pm
Running time: 60 minutes
Venue: Underbelly Cowgate
Tickets and Info: https://underbellyedinburgh.co.uk/event/experiment-human
Company Website: https://hookyproductions.weebly.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hooky_productions/
Twitter: https://x.com/hookyproductio1
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