Bane

Having a sequel to last year’s one-man hit Bane running at the Pleasance Dome clearly isn’t enough for Joe Bone. He’s bringing back the original throughout August at the GRV, clearly hoping to draw the crowds back for more film noir parody after dinner. On this evidence, the strategy could work.

The show begins at a frantic pace as Bone flits between a huge cast of characters, each instantly recognisable with wonderfully expressive tics and mannerisms. With a voice and face of seemingly unlimited flexibility, he creates all his sound effects with his lips.

At the show’s best, the audience are sprayed with sharp asides, film references and subversive gags, often still laughing as the next volley comes in. Within the space of ten seconds Joe Bone can switch from his gumshoe hero Bruce Bane via a snarling Mexican gangster to an aroused moll.

While this high-speed extreme flexibility can work very well, it comes at a price. From the halfway point, the rate of good gags starts to flag and Bane increasingly descends to the level of easy gay jokes. The general impression is that Bone is a little tired from setting such a hot pace earlier on. While the finale picks up a little with a rather funny Johnny Cash parody, the originality has gone.

With its hero’s sound-effect, spittle-flecked gunshots echoing throughout, much of the show is an excellent combination of impressions and physical comedy. However, it runs out of ammunition too early to be truly immersive. Great value for a fiver, though.