Lady Garden

Watching a bunch of ex-drama students debuting at the Fringe, showcasing home-grown material, is unlikely to instill a great sense of anticipation. Everyone hates drama students. But forget that. Lady Garden rocks.

Whether they graduated top of their class or not, the presence, timing and shear strength of Lady Garden’s material belies their age, as well as their status as Fringe virgins. With fifty minutes of snappy, smooth and intelligent comedy—the kind of sketches you wish BBC3 would commission—there’s real edge here, and real heart. From subtle facial nuances to naked flesh, Lady Garden fuses technical skill with a vivacious charm that’s difficult to resist.

We’re talking comedy that’s clever but not pretentious, edgy but not cheap, sexy but not crass... and a lot of fun. And there’s no dead weight in the cast, who all share the intuitive grace of old friends. True to say, some of the songs could have used more lyrical punch, and the opening and closing voiceovers need more work. But frankly (patronizing alert here) for such young performers, this was a storming start.

Keep your eye on these girls in the future, and not just because they’re pretty. Let’s hope they stick with this show, because it’s already strong and after a couple of years of honing it could be devastating.