KEVIN!!!!! is the latest instalment in the repertoire of Recent Cutbacks, a production company who are no stranger to the Fringe, also bringing their smash-hit shows Fly You Fools and Hold Onto Your Butts (respectively Lord of the Rings and Jurassic Park retrospectives) back this August.
With this year’s KEVIN!!!!! the production company is mixing things up with a combination of puppets, intricate miniature set design, and live performance to condense the beloved Christmas movie Home Alone into one laugh-packed hour, with Kristin McCarthy Parker’s direction.
The show opens with a miniature version of the McCallisters’ house, using puppets to display the chaos of the film’s opening sequences, with my favourite moment being a perfect impression of Uncle Frank’s iconic line “look what you did, you little jerk.” As the production continues, the scale of the acting and puppetry increases, introducing larger puppets, green screens, and moments of audience interaction. When stepping back from the in-the-moment laughs, it was hard not to be astounded by the creativity of the production—especially with practical effects like a furnace made out of a claw clip and a piece of red wool.
The expert team was made up of four performers and a live Foley artist. Again, it was the progression of the scale of the performance that made the show stand out, with expert impressions and wooden puppets building up to fully characterised performances, whilst simultaneously managing set pieces and increasingly elaborate puppets. A standout performance came from Natalie Rich, who captured the essence of Catherine O’Hara as Kevin’s mother, willing to do anything to get back to her son.
Richard Sears’ a cappella work was the shining star on top of the Christmas tree of this performance, leading the audience enthusiastically in live sing-alongs of Christmas classics whilst mastering the Foley effects and the musical score which the movie is so famous for.
Outside of the inventiveness, skill, and comedic precision of the actors, when looking around the venue, it was a joy to see audience members of all ages joining in on the fun. KEVIN!!!!! demonstrated an understanding of how to bring all corners of Fringe audiences together, and I can’t help but feel slightly festive in the middle of August.
KEVIN!!!!! is running until 31 August at Pleasance Forth.
Buy tickets here
Image provided to the Student by The Pleasance for press use
