Assembly Roxy
Aug 7-26 (14:25)
Magna est Veritas et Praevalet
…& so, it was off to the Edinburgh Fringe for my tenth year anniversary of reviewing the Fringe. A boat from Arran, a train from Ardrossan, the Citylink bus from Glasgow, then cruising into Edinburgh where thousands of Scotland shirts flashing by as they trundl’d off in their droves to Murrayfield for the rugby with France. Next was Princes Street, Saturday-teeming & gleaming in the sunshine. From there I walk’d up into the Old Town & KABOOM! the Fringe had arriv’d in my world & I in it’s.
My first show of 2023 was in the Assembly Roxy building, a great theater space straight from the Beaux Arts, whose seatage was completely full for the Rob Auton Show. Also full was the stage, an aesthetic frame for Auton’s endeavors containing the accoutrements of his creativity; big sheets with writing on such as AROUSAL, SURPRISE, JOY & FEAR; photos of his younger self, & the such like. The busy-busy crowd was football-buzzy, he’s clearly a big thing in some people’s hearts, made testament when he told us this was his biggest audience he’d ever play’d to at the Fringe. As a neutral, however, I had the benefit of lacking bias while experience his offerings, altho’ I had heard him on a John Robins’ podcast once, so I had a vague idea of what to expect.
Auton begins by saying that he will be entertaining us in the splinter-zone, y’know, that phase of intense concentration you enter when trying to remove a splinter from your foot. From there we were tractor-beam’d into the ethereal, liquefying spaciousness of Auton’s aura & once within we await his comedic blows without any strength to parry them. We are literally helpless, so entrancing is his hold. But does that mean he’s funny? Well, at times, extremely, while at others, not so much – yet eminently watchable all the way through. He’s like a repeating firework, shooting starry sparkles of diffuse colors into the sky, which we all ‘woo’ at in wonder, then find ourselves waiting silently for the next one.
After a series of the most unique explanations as to the potentialities of the Human Experience, & an extremely moving & profound closing finalogue (portmanteau of finale & monologue), my overall experience of Rob Auton is that he holds some deep-seated truths, & seeing the long-haired & bearded maturer man in front of the photos of his cherubic early-twenties, impress’d upon me that fact the Auton is well on his way to becoming something magnificent – tho’ not quite there yet.
Damo
Mumble Comedy 