Review: Alison Larkin: Grief... A Comedy

“We all die,” says Alison Larkin with a soft shrug. And if we’re lucky, we’ll leave behind people who love us. Grief… A Comedy is a gently meandering comedy-cabaret about Larkin’s search for a soulmate and the devastation of losing him. An experienced voice actor, she conjures up awkward first dates, technologically incompetent parents and the disarming twang of her birth mother, but the most striking voice is her own: Larkin’s humour is almost hidden away in non-sequiturs but has a zaniness which surprises and charms her audience.

With Gary Schreiner on keys, Larkin’s chatty, casual storytelling is interspersed by short, sweet songs which bring a touch of the cinematic. Sometimes her easy-going narration drops the pace, but when the stars align there is real, butterflies-in-stomach romance. Schreiner’s loungey jazz adds extra sparkle to Larkin’s fairytale meet-cute, but, skilfully, both performers stay away from the saccharine. The hour stops in the middle of the story (largely because Larkin’s written a memoir about what happened next), but it turns Grief… a Comedy into a gorgeous love story, and a celebration of the bravery it takes to risk loss for a chance at happiness.