Review: Olga Koch Comes From Money

Olga Koch is back in Edinburgh with an insightful, thought provoking and hugely entertaining show about wealth and privilege. Exploring who deserves money, and whether you can separate yourself from the privileges you’ve been given, she doesn’t shy away from difficult questions or to state precisely what she’s good at.

Acknowledging the challenges of looking at yourself objectively, Koch explains her process and establishes her reasons for writing the show. She has clearly done a lot of research and is funny but credible, even dressed for the occasion in a John Lewis suit – this is a subject she’s taking seriously.

Olga Koch Comes From Money includes a crash course in Russian socio-economic history, references to her family background, and tales from her liberating years in New York, all delivered with confidence and impeccable timing. Koch sets up clever jokes that deliver later, while others are less sophisticated, but it doesn’t matter as the show is jammed with brilliant quips.

She asks the audience if what she’s saying is relatable, knowing that it won’t be for the vast majority, which makes it harder to establish a connection, but she keeps the room hooked with her typical boldness and razor-sharp wit. Olga Koch Comes From Money has more depth than her previous shows, with added maturity and confidence, signalling that Koch is at the top of her game.