At the very beginning of her Fringe debut Silkworm, Sarah Roberts makes a few statements. She is hot. She is talented. And she is baffling.
The show which follows proves that all of these claims are absolutely true. Sarah leads her audience through an hour of pure laughs. She seemed a little delirious after three weeks of nonstop performing, and was suffering from a hoarse voice as a result (“I’ve never sounded sexier,” she lamented). Yet Sarah still managed to put on an absolutely incredible, unmissable show.
Silkworm is both a confessional and conversational show. You get the impression that you’re chatting with an old friend and getting caught up on all the gossip. Sarah guides us through her Wikipedia rabbit holes and her formative sexual experiences; her childhood memories at an all-girl’s school and her position as one of the top 1% players of Candy Crush worldwide.
Perhaps the most overarching narrative thread in Silkworm is that of Sarah’s reconstructive facial surgery, which she received at the age of 21. Over the course of the hour, Sarah explains the ways in which this surgery changed her life, and also the ways in which it didn’t. Silkworm manages to be meaningful without being cheesy; Sarah remains delightful and a little bit delusional throughout.
Watching Sarah perform gave me the impression that I was watching a big name just before they got their ‘big break.’ She was riotously funny and incredibly charismatic, with immense stage presence and an immediate sense of comfort engaging with her audience. Her vulnerability and honesty, combined with her overconfident persona, made Silkworm a truly fantastic piece of comedy. I can’t wait to see her at her next Fringe. I’m sure she will be even hotter and more talented in a year’s time.
Image by Raphael Neal provided to The Student for press use