Riot Showgrrrls Club, The

Gilded Balloon Teviot    30 July-25 August @ 22.15    Dworkin

This show bills itself as feminist and it certainly takes a non-mainstream look at sex and pornography – but with a light touch. There is certainly no hint of the political heaviness that sometimes comes with the feminist banner. There are many likeable qualities to this show. It has a clarity and a humanity, a sensitivity, an intelligence and a sense of humour that are very attractive. The two female performers are full of vitality and the mostly original songs ripple by at great speed. There is food and drink and light-hearted competition and time spent at the Billiard Room at Teviot passes very quickly. The occasional non-original songs, especially Tom Lehrer’s Masochist’s Tango, are a pleasure to hear and the mixture of what I hope was live piano playing and recorded music worked smoothly.

The set is bright and cheerful and the costumes alluring. In a more sophisticated venue, better lighting would have added a lot to the production, but it is easy to forgive that at the  fringe.

This show, as it says itself, is a ‘musical romp’ and within it all is a message full of life about celebrating ourselves and living life to the full. See it.