Fringe success stories of sold-out crowds and extra shows due to high demand are few and far between. A needle in the haystack of thousands of comedians trying to make it big. Sarah Keyworth is one such stroke of genius.
Performing to a packed-out Pleasance Grand as a one off bonus show alongside their run at Monkey Barrell Comedy, Keyworth is immediately a charismatic and engaging force on stage. Endearingly aware at being in the ‘big boy room’, Sarah began the set relating their identity journey and instantly had the entire audience in complete rapture and hilarity.
The performance centres around the comic’s recent top surgery (elective double mastectomy) following their 30th birthday and the possible stir it might have caused at a big 70th family gathering. While a niche, and largely unrelatable topic, Keyworth maximises this goldmine of personal anecdotes to create a fantastically witty and intelligent stand up routine.
In telling the story of an emotional, identity-affirming decision, the show is not without its forays into the sentimental. However, just when the audience are on the precipice of awkward British empathy, Keyworth delivers a sensational comedic mic drop keeping spirits perpetually elated.
Despite the debate-stirring topic, Sarah Keyworth is a comedian in total command of their wit and their audience, having those with blue hair and piercings laughing in unison with the dads who bought a last-minute ticket.
In their tenth year performing in Edinburgh, there is no one more deserving of the Midas Touch this fringe.
Sarah Keyworth: My Eyes Are Up Here is on at Monkey Barrel Comedy (Monkey Barrel 3) until 25th August.
Buy tickets here.
Image provided by Monkey Barrel Comedy Press Release.
