On a stage littered with tin foil, a wailing Dr Seuss-like alien named B48Y brandishes a translation device (a dildo). B48Y’s spacecraft has just crashed into an Edinburgh gay nightclub and it’s on us to teach him how to walk, talk and dress like RuPaul. What follows is a wild, hour-long ride of high-camp absurdity.
Our annoying yet deeply loveable alien is played by professional silly billy Lukas Meintjes, who has the half-cut audience in fits of laughter for the show’s entire duration. Prancing around in a yellow lycra suit with purple fur tufts, Meintjes ropes in the extroverts hell-bent on getting their 5 minutes of fame and has them twerking and sashaying on stage. He receives the biggest laughs when he slips out of gobbledygook and into English to roast the participants.
While the show has a neat routine, Meintjes is an expert improvisor who responds eagerly to the whims of the audience – on the night I went, he crowd surfed with no hesitation. Ultimately, there are no deep life lessons to be taken away from this ridiculous clowning show; it’s all about unadulterated silliness. And sometimes that’s the most memorable of the Fringe.
B48Y Crash Lands on Earth!, Assembly George Square Studios, until 30 Aug (not 12, 19,25), 10.40pm