MIK SABIERS savours the first headline solo show of the stalwart of Brighton’s indie-punk outfit Blood Red Shoes
The best medicine
JAMES WALSH is therapeutically disrobed by a disarmingly attentive exploration of harsh truths and nonsense
BJORK-ESQUE ELFIN ALIEN: Julia Masli
New releases reviewed by IAN SINCLAIR
STEVEN ANDREW is moved beyond words by a historical account of mining in Britain made from the words of the miners themselves
CAILEAN MCBRIDE welcomes a refreshing and timely study of the way officialdom creates structures that exclude LGBT+ rights and humanity
The bard mourns the loss of comrades and troubadours, and looks for consolation with Black Country Jess
CHRIS MOSS relishes the painting and the life story of a self-taught working-class artist from Warrington
MARY CONWAY is disappointed by a star-studded adaptation of Ibsen’s play that is devoid of believable humanity
Julia Masli: ha ha ha ha ha ha ha
Soho Theatre
Can a clown save the world?
This probably wasn’t what Julia Masli, an Estonian performer trained by the notorious Parisian pedagogue Philippe Gaulier, had set out to achieve with her latest. Still, you never know. Masli always aims high, with seemingly limitless reserves of care, poise, and life-affirming naivete.
And after an hour of this staggering, beautiful, and heartfelt show, your correspondent is a convert to the idea of free Masli on the NHS. It’s called ha ha ha ha ha ha ha, but it was never supposed to be funny — or so its author claims. Instead, a Bjork-esque elfin alien, Masli in a typically ludicrous outfit, attempts to solve the audience’s problems, whether big or small, serious or inconsequential.
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