Marky Mac Sherry Tells It Like It Is

New Theatre

*** 

Martin Sharry's anti-stand-up is a study in intentional awkwardness, corralling comedian tropes into a format where they are dispensed unevenly to disconcerting effect. Marky arrives on stage dishevelled and nervous, and like all good esoteric comedy, it leaves the audience guessing. What exactly are we meant to be laughing at? There are also some decent straight-up gags, while the pregnant pauses and measured delivery creates a peculiarly compelling atmosphere. But it's the commentary on serious illness – in this case Parkinson's – that creates the best callback, with a cruel joke played 20 years ago returning to haunt. Wandering into philosophy, Slavoj Zizek quotes are left hanging, a knowing gimmick that focuses on utterance, not exploration. This is a show that feigns to be as dishevelled as its creator, yet is far slicker underneath the scruff. If it tucked its shirt in a little, it could be very good indeed.