Lorna Irvine is impressed with Bryony Kimmings latest (****) impassioned piece.
There aren't many shows, even at the Fringe, which feature the lost art of eye gouging with a spoon, but then we are in Bryony Kimmings’ land, after all. Kimmings, a performance artist with a filthy sense of humour and propensity to make semi-autobiographical work, has had enough. Enough of thongs being sold to children; pester power, the vacuous nature of fame , violent misogyny in porn becoming increasingly accessible to kids with tablets and the lack of decent role models for her nine year old niece Taylor Houchen.
So she thought: why not collaborate with Taylor? By involving Taylor, she can bond with her, be a cool auntie and discover what it is young girls want while simultaneously creating an alternative to the materialistic stream of crap perpetuated by the mainstream media.
Taylor herself is a charming girl, pretty feisty like Bryony with some good comic timing of her own. The two scrap and dance off to Jessie J and Katy Perry...but what actually unfolds is a highly unexpected, blisteringly savage but moving piece, meditating on the commodification and sexualisation of children by advertisers, and the fleeting nature of innocence.
Kimmings' affable and raunchy persona makes it very clear this is not a show for kids, in spite of David Curtis Ring's fairy-tale forest backdrop and Little Lord Fauntleroy costumes they both don at the start, and the tone is precariously balanced between the child's aspirations and Kimming's own failings as an adult.
How Kimmings gets around discussing more adult matters is by making the girl wear earphones while she lets rip on feminism, fucking and fighting. Her attack is lucid, lyrical and deadly.
As for the titular superstar persona, step forward one Catherine Bennett: palaeontologist, glamour puss and intelligent pop star. Kimmings has actually brought the character of Bennett to schools in order to get a dialogue going on what inspires children in 2013.
“After all,” sighs Kimmings, cradling her niece's head, “this is her future, and it's a dark time we live in.”
But out of the darkness, here comes Bryony—chipping away at the patriarchy with her little silver spoon. Just don't let her anywhere near your face.
Credible Likeable Superstar Role Model performs at the Pleasance Dome
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