Xhloe and Natasha are the names on everyone’s lips this August. With a string of Fringe First awards already under their belts, the New York-based clown duo have swept the festival away for several years running. Their sold-out, all-new show, Bigfoot Ripped My Dog In Half I Saw It follows two teenagers’ escapades as they wreak havoc in an Appalachian town by faking bigfoot sightings.
Bursting onto the stage, Xhloe and Natasha jolt the audience to attention with their unparalleled charisma and chemistry. The pair combine clowning and simple acrobatics to tell the story of a community recovering from the trauma of a devastating flood, and how its collective vulnerability creates a breeding ground for a conspiracy theory as wild as the existence of an 8-foot humanoid creature that hunts pet dogs.
While the narrative is initially disjointed and difficult to follow, we’re soon fully brought up to speed and invested in a Twin Peaks-style mystery. Distrust in power emerges as a prominent theme, as Xhloe and Natasha embody a line-up of characters, from a bitchy shop assistant to the Mayor’s robotic crisis PR representative, demonstrating both perception and range. But best of all, they make for a convincing pair of misguided and scheming teenagers, whose spiralling lies turn a small town upside down.
Undoubtedly, Xhloe and Natasha will go down in Fringe history. It’s unsurprising that this high-energy, supremely choreographed work is transferring to London’s Soho Theatre in September.
Bigfoot Ripped My Dog In Half I Saw It, Summerhall, until 30 Aug (not 18, 25), 9.10pm