Relying heavily on the lively audience, BOYKING is an energetic and loud solo performance. Following the rise and fall of a tyrannical eight-year-old prince, the pace is relentless, the humour broad and the structure chaotic. Lil Wenker shifts between characters, sings and raps, gets the crowd involved but fails to deliver more than blunt comedy.
Stylistically, Lil Wenker’s approach is caught between the ferocity of the boufon and the vulnerability of the clown. The protagonist is nasty, but never threatens the audience: other characters lack the depth to evoke sympathy. The plot is episodic and busy, forcing Lil’ Wenker to rush through murders, acts of oppression and tantrums. The humour lacks wits and aims for easy laughs, whether exposing inappropriate underwear or sudden swearing.
The amount of plot undermines Lil Wenker’s attempts to build character or even a coherent clown persona. After an introduction inviting audience members to offer gifts – which abruptly concludes with no pay-off – Wenker chases through the action, using familiar tropes without developing them. There are moments that hint at a greater skill – ironic facial expressions during the songs that undercut their sentiments – but too often the switching between characters and need for speed reduces the performance to an hour of shouting.
Lil Wenker: BOYKING, Pleasance Courtyard, 5-30 Aug (not 17), 9.45pm