Carey Marx's charm and sharp wits save an underdeveloped show for Emma McAlpine.
Carey Marx is a comic you instantly warm to. Which is odd, as what comes out of his mouth is usually peppered with expletives and would certainly offend anyone with delicate sensibilities. Welcoming everyone into the room at the start and amiably cajoling a small Sunday night crowd to fill the front row, the man's got charm in spades.
Having realised that some of the issues he explored in his last few shows haven't been resolved (those hotel windows are still remaining shut - he has the evidence), he wonders whether stand-up comedy can actually make a difference. Exploring themes of laziness in comedy (hack stand-ups if you can't find a woman's clitoris you're clearly shit in bed) and prejudice ("Is it just me or is it always fat people who stop suddenly on the street?"), Marx doesn't mince his words.
Covering some typically provocative subject matter, the use of the c-bomb, 'Rabbi rape' and when it's ok to slap a woman, he'd have Jan Moir screaming for the hills. Is it ok to laugh at fat people? The audience seems uncertain (the rather rotund lady crossing her arms next to me is definitely not on side) and yet, delivered with his trademark coy grin, he somehow gets away with it.
Lacking any clear narrative arc or theme, this is more a collection of random musings and stories about things that have happened to him in the last year. One midway anecdote involving the imaginary revenge he would exact on a noisy train passenger is hysterical and by far the highlight of the show. Yet, his final tale about getting sat on by a fat schoolgirl lacks any real comic punch and Marx eventually tails off, ending the show on a flat note.
It feels like it's been rather hastily cobbled together; with a little bit more work spent on developing his ideas, it has the makings of something much greater. As it is, he has enough devilish good humour and sharp wits to carry 'the stuff' through.
Carey Marx: Laziness and Stuff is at the Gilded Balloon at 22:15pm until the 28th August
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